Members of the Executive Board: Prof. Georg Bertram, Prof. Sven Chojnacki, Prof. Günter M. Ziegler, Prof. Petra Knaus, Prof. Verena Blechinger-Talcott (fLTR)
Image Credit: Bernd Wannenmacher
University Management
The Executive Board (Präsidium) is in charge of managing Freie Universität Berlin. It is composed of the President of the university, the Executive Vice President, who also serves as the Permanent Deputy of the President, three other Vice Presidents (VP2, VP3 and VP4), each of whom is responsible for specific areas, and the Director of Administration and Finance.
Among its other responsibilities, the Executive Board approves the draft budget, publishes guidelines for budgetary and economic administration, and makes suggestions as to the establishment, modification, and elimination of organizational units, as well as proposing structural and development plans for Freie Universität Berlin and implementing the resolutions of the Academic Senate (Akademischer Senat) as to the establishment and elimination of courses of study.
Responsibility and Teamwork
The Executive Board works according to the principle of collective responsibility. The President is responsible for setting guidelines within the Executive Board. Within those guidelines, each Vice President and the Director of Administration and Finance (Kanzlerin) is responsible for managing his or her division independently and on his or her own responsibility.
The Director of Administration and Finance supports the President in performing his duties. She manages ongoing administrative business and is bound by the guidelines set by the President in so doing. She is also the official in charge of the budget.
The Electoral Procedure at Freie Universität Berlin
The president of Freie Universität is elected by a majority of the members of the Extended Academic Senate and formally appointed by the Berlin Senate for a term of four years. Candidates are nominated in advance by the Extended Academic Senate.
The executive vice president and additional vice presidents of Freie Universität are also elected by a majority of the members of the Extended Academic Senate and formally appointed by the Berlin Senate’s department with responsibility for higher education for a term of four years (two years for student representatives). Candidates are nominated jointly by the president and the Extended Academic Senate.
The director of administration and finance is nominated by the president in agreement with the board of trustees, elected by a majority of the members of the Extended Academic Senate, and appointed by the Berlin Senate for a term of eight years.