CU appoints Kenneth T. Christensen as the next chancellor of the Denver campus

The University of Colorado this week named Kenneth T. Christensen, provost of the Illinois Institute of Technology, as the next chancellor of the Denver campus following a national search.

“The honorable mission of this institution, including education and innovation, became clear to me during my interactions with the search committee and my visit to campus, and this mission aligns with my own values ​​and priorities as an academic leader,” Christensen said in a news release from the CU. . “I am thrilled to join the University of Colorado as the next chancellor of CU Denver and to support the campus community in their transformative work to ensure and expand student success, scholarly impact and economic development expand.”

As provost at the Illinois Institute of Technology, Christensen launched academic initiatives around workforce readiness, created a pathway for undecided students to explore college options and directed a university-wide task force to modernize the curriculum around the entrepreneurial mindset, design and innovation, computing and data literacy. and leadership, the news release said.

Christensen’s Hispanic heritage contributed to his passion for charting Illinois Tech’s path to becoming a Hispanic institution, CU officials said.

He first joined Illinois Tech in 2020 as Carol and Ed Kaplan Armor College Dean of Engineering. Previously, he was on the faculty of Notre Dame, the University of Illinois and the University of New Mexico.

A native of Santa Fe, New Mexico, Christensen holds degrees from the University of New Mexico, the California Institute of Technology and the University of Illinois.

Michelle Marks announced in August that she would step down as chancellor of CU Denver. Ann Schmiesing, vice chancellor for academic resource management at the University of Colorado Boulder, has since served as interim chancellor.

Christensen will begin his new role in February.