Mark Schlissel
Mark Steven Schlissel is an American medical scientist who served as the 14th president of the University of Michigan from July 2014 to January 2022. On January 15, 2022, he was removed from the office by the Board of Regents for being in "an inappropriate relationship with a University employee."
Schlissel's initial contract with the University of Michigan lasted five years, and he received a second five-year contract, which was due to expire in 2024. He had planned to step down as president in 2023, but was fired by the University of Michigan Board of Regents on January 15, 2022 for interacting with a coworker in a way that was "inconsistent with promoting the dignity and reputation of the University of Michigan". The Regents further alleged that Schlissel was involved "in an inappropriate relationship with a University employee," although they did not specify the nature of the relationship or reveal details of any investigation that led them to that conclusion.
He holds both a professorship of microbiology and immunology and a professorship of internal medicine within the University of Michigan Health System as well as a professorship of molecular, cellular, and developmental biology in the University of Michigan College of Literature, Science, and the Arts.
Biography
Schlissel was born in Brooklyn, New York, in a traditional Jewish household. He was raised in Old Bridge Township, New Jersey, graduating from Madison Central High School in 1975. He was inducted into its Wall of Fame in 2017. Schlissel was named the 14th president of the University of Michigan in 2014, serving in that role until January 2022.He graduated with a B.A. in biochemical sciences from Princeton University in 1979. He earned his M.D. degree and a Ph.D. in physiological chemistry from the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in 1986 through the Medical Scientist Training Program. His residency in Internal Medicine was conducted at the Johns Hopkins Hospital from 1986 to 1988. His postdoctoral research fellowship was under David Baltimore at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Whitehead Institute.
Previously, Schlissel became a faculty member at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in 1991. He moved to the Department of Molecular and Cell Biology at UC Berkeley in 1999 as an associate professor, becoming a full professor in 2002. At UC Berkeley, he served as Dean of Biological Sciences in the College of Letters & Science from 2008 to 2011. In 2011, he became provost at Brown University.
Schlissel is married to Monica Schwebs, an environmental and energy lawyer and his Princeton classmate, and they have four children.
University presidency
Hiring and recruitment
Schlissel was appointed in 2014, following the retirement of Mary Sue Coleman. Schlissel's appointment was unanimously approved by the Board of Regents in a special meeting on January 24, 2014.Schlissel was recruited from Brown University, where he was provost from 2011 to 2014 under Ruth Simmons and Christina Paxson. He was offered a $750,000 base salary on a five-year contract, making him the fourth highest paid public university president.
Contract extension
In 2018, with one year remaining on Schlissel's first five-year contract, the University Regents extended Schlissel's contract for five more years. The decision to extend Schlissel's contract followed an external performance review that credited Schlissel's leadership with Michigan's excellent performance in academic and medical center rankings, in addition to college affordability, fundraising and research funding. Schlissel's contract extension included a 3.5% raise, bringing his base compensation to $852,346.Administrative Initiatives
Go Blue Guarantee
In 2017, Schlissel announced an updated financial aid policy, in which any Michigan student from a family that makes less than $65,000 could attend University of Michigan in Ann Arbor for four years for free. The income cutoff was designed to include all Michigan families below the state median income, to expand access to the education for students who are traditionally under-represented on the Ann Arbor campus. The expanded financial aid program was supported by the $5.2 billion Victors For Michigan fundraising drive begun shortly before Schlissel's inauguration. Although the Victors for Michigan Campaign was expected to raise $4 billion, the campaign successfully raised over $5 billion, including $1.22 billion to expand access and enrich the educational experience for all students.Two years after starting the Go Blue Guarantee, the University of Michigan saw a 10% increase in applications from Michigan students whose families earn less than $75,000, despite decreasing numbers of Michigan high school graduates since the Go Blue Guarantee took effect. In 2019, two years after the Go Blue Guarantee took effect, approximately 20% of in-state students paid no tuition under the Go Blue Guarantee. Accelerated by the Go Blue Guarantee, the share of the student body who represented the first in their family to go to college increased from 8.7% in Schlissel's first year to 15.3% after the Go Blue Guarantee. In 2021, Schlissel extended the Go Blue Guarantee to students studying at UM Flint and UM Dearborn.
The Go Blue Guarantee is viewed as one of the most successful attempts to increase college access in the country, primarily by advertising college affordability to low- or middle-income families. Since Schlissel piloted the Go Blue Guarantee at the University of Michigan, the program's success has been replicated at many public flagship universities including the University of Virginia and the University of Texas.
Schlissel was recognized by the Jesse Jackson's Rainbow PUSH Automotive Project with the Let Freedom Ring award, in recognition of his contributions to diversity at University of Michigan through the Go Blue Guarantee. Additionally he was named Michiganian of the Year by the Detroit News in recognition of his efforts to promote access to education for Michigan students from diverse backgrounds.
Wolverine Pathways
To promote student body diversity by expanding the college preparation pipeline, Schlissel formed the Wolverine Pathways extracurricular program for students from school districts that are traditionally underrepresented on the Ann Arbor campus. The Wolverine Pathways program enrolls students in grade seven through 12 from Detroit, Ypsilanti or Southfield school districts, although attendance at public schools is not required for participation. Although the Wolverine Pathways program does not guarantee admission at University of Michigan, any student from the program who is admitted to University of Michigan can attend with a full-tuition four-year scholarship.Since the wolverine Pathways program began, over 900 students have attended free weekend and summer supplemental coursework in math, English and science, in addition to SAT or ACT exam preparation courses. Students in the Wolverine pathways program have been admitted to top universities, including University of Michigan, Michigan State University, Notre Dame, Ohio State and Morehouse College.
The Wolverine Pathways program was designed to relieve diversity bottlenecks in the college admission pipeline. Research in higher education diversity suggested that the major bottlenecks in diversity occur before the college admissions process, and by reaching students as young as 12 years old, the Wolverine Pathways program was designed to make students aware of higher education opportunities before the students commit to alternative after-high school opportunities. The Wolverine Pathways does not enroll students based on their race, but does operate in school districts whose racial makeup includes more black or Latino students than the statewide average.