Northern Kentucky University’s first female president begins tenure, implements new initiative

Dr. Cady Short-Thompson has recently taken up the post of president at Northern Kentucky University. She is the university’s seventh president and its first woman president in its history. Dr. Short-Thompson was welcomed into her new role during an investiture ceremony at the Truist Arena, during which she shared her excitement and ideas for her tenure as university president.

According to an article on Northern Kentucky University’s website, Dr. Short-Thompson was quoted as saying of her new role, “I am ecstatic to return home to NKU, where my professional journey began, and to give back to the people and place that invested so fully in me. NKU’s values of excellence, engagement, student-centeredness, and belonging are deep in me and I am eager to serve alongside NKU’s talented faculty, staff, students and alumni to lead this great institution forward. I love NKU and believe that it is entirely fitting that my first and final positions will be here.”

Rich Boehne, who serves as the Chair of the university’s Boards of Regents, said of Dr. Short-Thompson, “After a few months getting to know the job, the ceremony was the opportunity to let others see the university through her unique lens. The university’s community is immense, diverse and rapidly evolving, but the president sets the tone and establishes the pace. Her voice is the first that’s heard on matters of mission and strategy and the last voice that’s heard when results are measured and progress is assessed. The investiture ceremony marks the official time the president accepts the weight of the role and begins to write the next chapter of the NKU adventure story.”

Another recent article on Northern Kentucky University's website details a new initiative Dr. Short-Thompson has implemented at the beginning of her time as president. The initiative is called Women for NKU and is intended to encourage women to both continue and strengthen their financial support of the university in order to push forward some of Dr. Short-Thompson’s ideas and goals. The overall intention of the initiative is to become a network of women philanthropists that will provide opportunities for others and extoll the university’s programs and people.

Dr. Short-Thompson hopes to be able to use this initiative to raise $200,000 annually for the university in order to move forward with her varied goals of faculty support, empowering and supporting female student athletes, and creating pathways to higher education for students of various backgrounds.

Of the Women for NKU initiative, Dr. Short-Thompson said, “This endeavor not only empowers our community’s talented women but also propels our shared priorities forward, ensuring a future where every voice is heard and every potential realized.”

For more information about Northern Kentucky University, visit the school’s website.