Dr. Janet L. Holmgren
President of Mills College

On the frontlines of higher education for over 30 years, Janet L. Holmgren was appointed President of Mills College (Oakland, CA) in 1991. She came to Mills as one of the highest-ranking female administrators at Princeton University where she was vice provost from 1988 to 1991.  Instrumental in shaping the national agenda for women and higher education through her leadership roles with Mills and prominent boards, President Holmgren is currently on the Boards of  Princeton University, the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, and the National Council for Research on Women.

College Milestones During Holmgren Administration:

• Successfully completed a sesquicentennial campaign for Mills future with a $132 million total, $32 million over the $100 million goal;
• Major diversity initiatives created, resulting in faculty of color becoming 25% of total faculty (up from 3% in 1991), enhanced curriculum reflecting multiculturalism, college-wide diversity training, and diversity in student body making Mills among the top 15 liberal arts colleges in the nation for diversity; 
• Endowment enhanced ($70 to $230 million) through fundraising and sound management of investments, including major increases for financial aid and academic programming;
• Graduate programs, based in the strong liberal arts undergraduate curriculum, improved and expanded, including establishment of Mills’ first doctoral degree program in urban educational leadership, a School of Business, awarding the MBA since 2002, and new majors in intermedia, public policy, biopsychology, environmental science, and infant mental health;
• Mills’ Women’s Leadership Institute and Mills’ Institute for Civic Leadership established;
• $100 million of campus renovations and improvements completed, including $10 million renovation of historic Mills Hall, renovation of Art Museum and expansion of Art facilities, new education complex, renovated social science building, new student housing, a new science building, a new building for Graduate School of Business and undergraduate economics and the renovation of the historic Music building underway;
• Significant outreach to Oakland/Bay Area and California community in areas ranging from early childhood through 12th grade education to business development and city-planning.

Professional Service

• Princeton University Board of Trustees, Member
• Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching – Past Chair and current Member, Board of Directors
• National Council for Research on Women –  Past Chair and current member, Board of Directors
• Women’s College Coalition – Executive Board Member and Past Chair
• American Council on Education – Past Chair, Board of Directors
• Association of Independent California Colleges and Universities – Current Member, Executive Committee, Past Chair
• Master Plan Committee for Education in California, Current Member
• California Academy of Science – Member of Advisory Council
• Governance Working Group of the Joint Committee to Develop a Master Plan for Education, Kindergarten through University, State of California – Past Chair
• East Bay Community Foundation – Board of Directors, Past Member
• Urban School of San Francisco – Board of Directors, Past Member
• International Museum of Women – Board of Directors, Past Member

Awards and Recognition

• Chief Executive Officer Leadership Award for District VII from the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE)
• Award for Excellence in Education, California National Organization for Women, 2002
• Donna Shavlik Leadership Award for Lifetime Service, Office of Women in Higher Education, American Council on Education, 2001
• Hall of Fame, Hinsdale High School (Illinois), 1998
• Distinguished Alumni Achievement Award, Oakland University, 1996
• Honorary degree, Golden Gate University, 1995
• Honorary degree, Mount Vernon College, Washington DC, 1992
• Outstanding Woman Administrator, University of Maryland, 1988

Representative Publications and Essays in Professional Journals/Newspapers

Recent Representative Speeches

• “Women in Education in the 21st Century,” University of New Mexico, Loyola University, Agnes Scott College
• “Women’s Agenda for the Future,” American Council on Education, Fourth Women Presidents’ Summit, Washington, D.C.
• “Keeping in Balance While Moving Ahead,” American Council on Education annual meeting
• “The Outlook on National Education Policy,” Western CASE Conference
• “Women in the Workplace,” Lehman Brothers seminar for women clients
• “Values and Leadership,” plenary session, National Council for Research on Women
• “Academic Women in Transition,” Stanford University School of Humanities and Sciences  
• “Pluralism in the University in the 21st Century,” Princeton University colloquium

Professional Experience

President and Susan Mills Professor, Mills College, 1991-present

Vice Provost, Princeton University, 1988-91

Senior Administrator, University of Maryland (College Park), 1982-1988

Full-time Faculty Member, University of Maryland and Federal City College, 1972-1982

Education

Ph.D. in Linguistics, Princeton University, 1974

M.A. in Linguistics, Princeton University, 1971

B.A. in English, summa cum laude, Oakland University (Rochester, MI), 1968