Jouke de Vries interim president of UNL

Prof. Jouke de Vries, President of the Board of the University of Groningen, has been appointed interim President of UNL (Universities of the Netherlands; formerly known as the VSNU). De Vries succeeds Pieter Duisenberg, who has taken up the post of President of the Netherlands Court of Audit as from 1 September 2023. The nomination of De Vries as interim President came from the members of UNL.

Now that the General Elections and the coalition formation are set to take place in the near future, the filling of the role of interim President of UNL is highly important. Jouke de Vries will fulfil the role of President of UNL for two days a week. During this period, part of his duties at the UG will be taken over by Hans Biemans, Vice President of the Board of the University of Groningen.

In the run-up to the General Elections and the coalition formation, De Vries will focus on national issues, such as self-governance, stability in funding, the relationship between universities and universities of applied sciences, and internationalization.

De Vries will continue to act as President of the Board of the University of Groningen for three days a week.