North Central administrator takes Iowa position

A longtime vice president at Naperville’s North Central College, Laurie Hamen, has been named the ninth president of Mount Mercy University in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

Hamen, 54, of River Forest, has been an administrator at North Central since 1996 and served as vice president for enrollment management, athletics and student affairs since 2002.

Hamen was introduced to the Mount Mercy University community Friday and is scheduled to assume the presidency early next year.

“My work at North Central College has provided me with considerable experience that will be directly applicable to the work I will do as president of Mount Mercy University,” Hamen said in a written statement. “Like North Central, Mount Mercy is a comprehensive liberal arts institution that additionally concerns itself with civic engagement, professional education and a sense of place in the community.”

Brandt Worley, chairman of the Mount Mercy board of trustees, said Hamen was chosen during a nationwide search.

North Central President Troy D. Hammond praised Hamen’s initiatives in areas such as student recruitment and retention, Division III athletics, financial aid, expanded health services and enrollment of minority and international students.

“She wanted to ensure every student had the opportunity to enjoy an engaged and well-rounded college experience,” Hammond said in a statement. “She also mentored a generation of student affairs professionals who have succeeded at North Central and other institutions across the country.”

Hamen also served as North Central’s vice president for student affairs and dean of students from 1999 to 2002 and as dean of students from 1996 to 1999.

Mount Mercy is a Catholic school founded in 1928 that serves roughly 1,800 students.