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The Academic Council of the Humboldt-Universität elects three vice-presidents

The President’s Executive Council will start a new term in office under the leadership of Sabine Kunst

At its meeting on 27th April 2021, the Academic Council of the Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin elected the vice-presidents for the Research, the Academic Affairs, and the Finance, Human Resources and Operations departments.

  • The Vice-President for Research is Prof. Dr Christoph Schneider.
  • The Vice-President for Academic Affairs is Prof. Dr Niels Pinkwart.
  • Dr Ludwig Kronthaler was re-elected as the Vice-President for Finance, Human Resources and Operations. 

The new President’s Executive Council, under the leadership of Prof. Dr-Ing. Sabine Kunst, who was re-elected president of the Humboldt-Universität in November 2020, is thus complete. It will begin its work once all contractual questions and the exact starting dates of those serving on it have been clarified. 

The chairman of the Academic Council, Prof. Dr Alexander Nützenadel:

 “I congratulate Mr Schneider and Mr Pinkwart on their election as vice-presidents and Mr Kronthaler on his re-election. I hope that they will achieve a lot together at the Humboldt-Universität. The Academic Council chose these candidates because it is convinced that, together with the president, they will successfully advance the Humboldt-Universität over the coming years.”

The president of the Humboldt-Universität, Prof. Dr-Ing. Dr Sabine Kunst

“I am very much looking forward to the next few years with Mr Pinkwart and Mr Schneider, as well as to continuing to collaborate with Mr Kronthaler. Together, we will work as a team and harness each of our specific areas of knowledge to advance the university and lead it to visible success. With the new President’s Executive Council, we want to consistently continue on the path already embarked upon and, together with the Humboldtians, make the university a place where people enjoy teaching, studying, researching and working, and do so with great passion.”

Niels Pinkwart

“It is a great honour for me to work in this position for the Humboldt-Universität, and I will be happy to play a part in enabling innovation in learning and teaching together with the institutions of the HU.”

Niels Pinkwart has been Professor of Computer Science Education/Computer Science and Society at the HU since 2013. He heads the ProMINT College and the Centre for Technology-Assisted Learning at the Professional School of Education. He studied computer science and mathematics at the University of Duisburg and has held professorships at the Clausthal University of Technology. With his vice-presidential programme, entitled “Enabling Innovation Together”, he would like to combine the Humboldtian ideal of education with theses of the Hagen Manifesto on “New Learning” (among other things, this is about the autonomy of learners, and about networking and flexibility). What is important to him here is expanding networks and accessibility, dealing with heterogeneity, addressing digitisation, and promoting experimental forms of teaching and learning.

Christoph Schneider

“It was and is a great pleasure for me to work at the Humboldt- Universität and to support its causes. I respect the challenge of further advancing research at the Humboldt-Universität over the years to come. I will work to ensure that we take the necessary steps for this together with all groups and facilities at the HU.”

Christoph Schneider has been Professor of Climate Geography at the HU’s Geography Department and a member of IRI THESys since October 2015. As a co-founder of Scientists for Future, sustainability measures at the HU are important to him. In a “tour d’horizon de Humboldt”, he would like to develop strategies for advancing research together with all groups and in collaboration with the departments and faculties. The Berlin University Alliance is also to be further developed and continued. He also wants talent from both inside and outside the HU to be able to be identified, supported and permanently secured for the HU. Appreciating, honouring and supporting individual performance is just as important to him here as the proactive communication of successes in research. His aim is for sustainability and the focus on service at the HU to be strengthened through digitisation.

Ludwig Kronthaler

“I am delighted that the Academic Council has once again placed its trust in me. I will do everything I can to ensure that the Humboldt-Universität continues on the path it has set out on. This means: the further development, establishment and stabilisation of functional administrative systems and framework conditions that are able to guarantee the future viability of the HU Berlin.”

Ludwig Kronthaler has been Vice-President for Finance, Human Resources and Operations at the HU since 2017. Before his time at the HU, the lawyer was Secretary General of the Max Planck Society, Director of Resources Management at the European Space Agency, a judge at the Federal Fiscal Court, and, for many years, Chancellor of the Technical University of Munich. At the HU, he established the “humboldt together” programme, which involves the introduction of SAP, with the aim of changing and optimising processes in accounting, human resources and procurement, property management, and reporting. He also got the concept for human resources development off the ground.

In his second term of office, working under the motto “Excellent support for excellent scholarship”, he would like to further develop and stabilise the administrative systems and framework conditions that guarantee the future viability of the HU. His vision is to overcome the dichotomy between academia and administration and to preside over an administration that not only knows what academia needs, but which can also fulfil this.

About the Academic Council of the HU

The Academic Council is the university’s highest governing body. At the suggestion of the Board of Governors, it elects the members of the President’s Executive Council, decides on constitutional issues as well as matters relating to electoral procedure, and discusses the annual report of the President’s Executive Council. The tasks of the Academic Council are regulated in section 8 of the HU's Constitution. The 61 members of the Academic Council comprise the following status groups: university professors, academic staff, technical, service and administrative staff, and students. Its members’ term in office is two years.

Press contact

Hans-Christoph Keller
Press Spokesperson for the Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin   
Head of the Communications and Media Department            

Phone: 030 2093-12710
hans-christoph.keller@hu-berlin.de