Edith Hooge new chair of Executive Board UvA
The UvA has found a new president of the Board. It is educationist Edith Hooge, currently chair of the National Education Council. She succeeds Geert ten Dam, who will pass on the gavel to her after two terms on 1 June. Hooge is currently professor of Boards and Governance in Education at Tiburg University.
After eight years, the UvA will have a new president of the Board in the person of educationist Edith Hooge (Arnhem, 1967). She is an experienced administrator with academic stature. ‘With her vision, experience and connecting qualities, she can give direction to the course of the UvA as chair of the Board and as a team player, partly in view of the many challenges facing the university world,’ says Supervisory Board chair Marise Voskens in an explanation. Voskens brought in a former colleague from the Supervisory Board with the appointment: Hooge was UvA’s supervisor between 2017 and 2019.
Ten Dam the second
In retrospect, it is actually not such a surprise at all that the choice fell on Hooge. When Ten Dam’s vacancy was opened in December last year, the profile pretty much already showed that the UvA was looking for a similar president to Ten Dam. And that is where they ended up: Ten Dam also studied education science, Ten Dam was also chairman of the National Education Council, they both studied at the UvA and therefore know the culture and are both interested in co-determination and autonomy. Hooge even did research on it: she did a PhD (at the UvA) on a study on autonomy increase and deregulation in education. Last but not least, both women have a catholic background (as a child Hooge even wanted to become pope) and both are pretty down-to-earth types. Hooge said in an interview in the Dutch newspaper FD that she is “incredibly straight” and “does not like bullshit”. By appointing Hooge, the UvA is opting for continuity and governance certainty.
Different perspectives
Hooge is obviously delighted with the appointment .’It is an honour to be appointed to this position. I feel a great commitment to the UvA and was a student, PhD student, employee and later supervisor here. This allows me to understand the perspectives of different stakeholders within the university. I look forward to guiding the future of the UvA with them.’
Prior to her professorship at Tilburg, Hooge’s positions included lecturer school and environment in the big city at the Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences and lecturer Corporate Governance at Avans University of Applied Sciences. Edith Hooge has been appointed for four years. She will also be full professor of education governance and policy at the Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences.
Hooge is married to art historian, former Labour Party (PvdA) prominent and co-founder of campaign agency BKB Lennart Booij. With him she has a daughter. From a previous relationship she has another daughter.
