11 Apr Chancellor Hagerott’s farewell letter
An Open Letter to the Public:
Following today’s announcement at the Special SBHE meeting, I want to say it has been an absolute privilege and an honor to serve almost a decade as the Chancellor of the North Dakota University System, serving in the state where my immigrant family settled in 1885. With the Legislative Assembly rapidly completing its 2025 session work, I am accelerating my retirement as NDUS Chancellor, effective April 29, so that I can devote my full efforts to my national security work.
As many know, the Navy has always been in my heart. I was a long-serving naval officer, naval academic at Annapolis, and the Chair of the Secretary of the Navy’s Naval Education Task Force. Drawing on that experience, I will serve on two high-level boards and committees in the Naval University System as they strive to develop a long-range strategic plan for naval education.
In these times of rapid military change, my research and book project with the Naval Institute Press on naval officer formation has been expanded significantly with the emergence of artificial intelligence. It is to this work that I feel drawn to urgently devote my expertise and energies.
With the start of the Chancellor search delayed to late 2025 or early 2026, retiring this spring will allow the SBHE to select an Interim Chancellor who can provide stability, continuity, and leadership for the entire succession process.
In partnership with the SBHE, the NDUS team has made several notable accomplishments these past 10 years. Our enrollment, retention, and graduation rates have grown. Our North Dakota system of campuses powered through the COVID-19 pandemic, being one of the first in the nation to return to in-person instruction, coming out of it stronger and nimbler in providing programs where and when people want them. As a system, we have developed stronger partnerships with industries relevant to North Dakota’s economy and workforce, particularly in energy, healthcare, agriculture, and in the digital realm, with four institutions certified by the NSA as centers of cyber excellence.
With the miracle of distance work and research, I will divide my time between the DC area and North Dakota, and hope to spend a little more time helping on our Morton County family farm. I remain committed to helping North Dakota adapt to the emergence of artificial intelligence and the unfolding national security crisis of robotics, cyber, and AI. To that end, I will continue to offer my services on the Board of the Northern Tier Chapter of the National Defense Industrial Association and the North Dakota Unmanned Autonomous Systems Council. In addition, I remain committed to bringing more defense research and development to our state as part of the recent legislative National Security Crossroads Initiative.
Lastly, it has been an honor to work with wonderful staff at the system office, our dedicated technical experts at Core Technology Services, a cabinet of almost 20 talented institution presidents these past years, and a superb State Board of Higher Education, to include the five board chairs who have guided and mentored my work. I could not have served these last ten years without their advice, expertise, and support. I will be forever grateful for this opportunity to serve in the land of my fathers.
Sincerely,
Dr. Mark R. Hagerott
Chancellor