19 Feb Rebecca Blank: A life of leadership, scholarship and service
Rebecca M. Blank, an economist and educator who served in high-level U.S. government and academic positions and, for nine years, as chancellor of the University of Wisconsin–Madison, died of cancer Feb. 17 near Madison, Wisconsin. She was 67.
During her tenure at UW–Madison, from 2013–2022, Blank focused on improving educational outcomes and the student experience, further elevating the university’s world-class faculty and placing the university on firm financial footing through a combination of private fundraising and inventive strategies.
She was known for her direct style, quick analysis and dry sense of humor, all while leading one of the country’s top public research universities through a complex political period and a devastating global pandemic.
“Our community has lost a brilliant leader who cared deeply about making this great public research university stronger, more accessible, better connected to the community and the state and better positioned to make a difference in the world,” said Chancellor Jennifer Mnookin, who struck up a friendship with Blank in 2022 during her own transition into the chancellor role. “Becky inspired faculty, staff and administrators with an approach to problem-solving that combined vision, creativity, and pragmatism.” Read more …