MIAMI, Fla. — University of Michigan president Mary Sue Coleman has been elected to the board of trustees of the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation.

Dr. Coleman, 61, replaces former Smith College president Dr. Jill Ker Conway, who retired as a trustee after 14 years on Knight’s board, the last eight as vice chair.

“Mary Sue Coleman’s leadership in higher education will add much to Knight Foundation’s mission,” said W. Gerald Austen, M.D., chairman of Knight Foundation’s board of trustees. “From student life to ethics in society to athletics to financial aid, she is actively engaged in the issues of the day that affect the world of academics and beyond.” 

She was a member of the Knight Foundation’s Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics from 2000 until 2004. She serves as a member of the executive committee of the Association of American Universities, as well as the group’s Standards for Success advisory board, which is co-sponsored by The Pew Charitable Trusts.

Dr. Coleman was president of the University of Iowa from 1995 until 2002. Previously, she was provost and vice president for academic affairs at the University of New Mexico, and vice chancellor for graduate studies and research at the University of North Carolina. She is a professor of chemistry and biological chemistry. She received her bachelor’s degree in chemistry from Grinnell College and her Ph.D. in biochemistry from the University of North Carolina.

Dr. Coleman was elected to the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences in 1997. She is a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. She co-chairs the Institute of Medicine’s Committee on the Consequences of Uninsurance.

The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation promotes excellence in journalism worldwide and invests in the vitality of 26 U.S. communities.