Northwestern University - Organization and Administration

Organization and Administration

Northwestern is privately owned and is governed by an appointed Board of Trustees. The board, composed of 70 members and as of 2011 chaired by William A. Osborn '69, delegates its power to an elected president to serve as the chief executive officer of the university. Northwestern has had sixteen presidents in its history (excluding interim presidents), the current president, Morton O. Schapiro, an economist, having succeeded Henry Bienen whose 14-year tenure ended on August 31, 2009. The president has a staff of vice presidents, directors, and other assistants for administrative, financial, faculty, and student matters. Daniel I. Linzer, provost since September 2007, serves under the president as the chief academic officer of the university to whom the deans of every academic school, leaders of cross-disciplinary units, and chairs of the standing faculty committee report.

The Associated Student Government consists of the elected representatives of the undergraduate students and the Graduate Student Association represents graduate students.

Northwestern University is composed of 12 schools and colleges. The faculty for each school consists of the dean of the school and the instructional faculty. Faculty are responsible for teaching, research, advising students, and serving on committees. Each school's admission requirements, degree requirements, courses of study, and disciplinary and degree recommendations are determined by the voting members of that school's faculty (assistant professor and above).

Northwestern's endowment was $7.2 billion as of Aug. 31, 2011, estimated as ninth among US and Canadian universities. In 2003, Northwestern finished a five-year capital campaign that raised $1.55 billion, $550 million more than its goal. In 2007, the university sold its royalty interest in the pain relief drug Lyrica for $700 million, a drug developed at Northwestern by Richard Bruce Silverman, the John Evans Professor of Chemistry. This was the largest such sale in history, the proceeds of which were added to the endowment.

Northwestern University had a dental school from 1891 to May 31, 2001, when it closed.