From Staff Reports

Kimberly van Noort was named the ninth chancellor of the University of North Carolina Asheville, following a vote by the UNC Board of Governors on Nov. 29, UNCA announced in a Nov. 29 press release.

 â€œThe nationwide search attracted more than 130 applicants and nominees from 28 states and the District of Columbia,” the release noted. 

Leading the search process was Roger Aiken, who serves as chair of the UNCA Board of Trustees.

Aiken “praised the 13-member search advisory committee for its engaged and thorough efforts that resulted in recommending three unranked and very talented finalists to UNC System President Peter Hans.

“Hans nominated van Noort to the board, which voted unanimously in her favor,” the release stated.

“UNC Asheville is an extraordinary place with a unique role among public universities,” Hans said, according to the release. “It deserves a chancellor who can celebrate and expand the mission of a public liberal arts and sciences university, and Dr. van Noort is absolutely the right leader for the job. 

“Her deep background in the humanities and her wide-ranging skills as an administrator are the perfect combination for strengthening UNC Asheville and putting a fantastic education within reach of more students.”

Reacting to her appointment, Van Noort — who is a  scholar of French literature with extensive administrative experience — was quoted in the UNCA release as saying, “I am thrilled, honored, humbled and excited.” 

“UNC Asheville was my very first campus visit after arriving at the UNC System Office in 2016,” she added, “and I remember vividly how it struck me as a very special place with incredible potential.”

Further she said, “Seven years later, after serving first as interim provost and now interim chancellor since the start of the new year, I can easily report that my first impression has been confirmed ten-fold.”

The UNCA release then noted, “Van Noort has served as interim chancellor of UNCA since Jan. 1, 2023, succeeding Nancy Cable. Since assuming her leadership role, van Noort quickly developed a solid operational model to align the size and mission of the university in order to ensure its long term health. 

“A key component of this effort was shifting the existing enrollment model to a student-centered approach that resulted in the largest incoming class of new first-time students in the last four years, as well as crucial increases in applications over previous years. 

“The university also saw significant gains in new first-generation and Pell-eligible students, in addition to reaching its highest-ever overall enrollment of students from underrepresented populations.

“Already underway, the current recruitment cycle has seen even more aggressive applicant development, improved marketing, more efficient admissions processing, and data-driven strategic financial aid deployment, all targeted at addressing successive enrollment declines over the past five years.”

What’s more, the release asserted, “van Noort led efforts to launch the new Access Asheville financial aid program, which expands UNC Asheville’s long standing commitment to affordability by guaranteeing full tuition and fees to qualifying students from North Carolina whose family income is less than $80,000.

“Looking ahead to the centennial celebration of UNC Asheville in 2027, van Noort said she is excited to partner with all campus stakeholders on planning for what she sees as a very bright future,” the release stated.

Van Noort added “The people, the location, the support from the community, the generous donors who keep coming back to give more, and the potential of campus assets all position the university to be very successful moving into its second century.”