Susan Hunter had served as vice chancellor of academic affairs for all seven of the state’s public universities since September 2013. (Photo courtesy of University of Maine)
“It’s about time,” says the first female president of the University of Maine’s flagship campus in Orono, Susan Hunter, about the historic appointment.
While July 7 was her start date, Hunter is no new face on campus, having begun in 1987 as an adjunct professor.
“Because I have spent my entire career here, I know people throughout the state. I feel very comfortable on the other campuses, visiting and meeting with people,” she says.
Since September 2013, she had served as vice chancellor of academic affairs for all seven of the state’s public universities. Before that, she held various posts from associate provost and dean for undergraduate education to assistant director in the College of Natural Sciences, Forestry and Agriculture.
“She is, moreover, already extremely well-known throughout the state as a tireless advocate for public higher education. She is the clear choice to advance the University of Maine,” stated system chancellor James H. Page in announcing the appointment.
Although she’s steadily climbed the administration’s ranks, Hunter’s training is in the sciences, having earned a degree in biology from James Madison University and a Ph.D. in physiology from Pennsylvania State University. She also completed postdoctoral studies at Case Western Reserve University and Penn State.
“I had a fabulous husband-and-wife mentorship team, Harold and Rosemary Schraer. [Rosemary] started out without a faculty position, and she came in as sort of a research tech and worked her way up.
