Update:
July 1: This story was updated to reflect the regents officially naming Keller as the campus' next president.
UNT System names Harrison Keller as Denton school’s new president
Keller will succeed Neal Smatresk who led the university for over a decade.
Harrison Keller will be the University of North Texas’ next president, the UNT System Board of Regents announced Monday.
The board of regents conducted a national search for the position and announced Keller was the sole finalist in June. He will succeed Neal Smatresk, who led the university for over a decade.
“Harrison Keller has spent his career committed to improving Texas higher education,” Chancellor Michael R. Williams wrote in a statement. “His ability to lead, innovate, and partner both statewide and nationally has helped transform Texas higher education and will have an invaluable impact on UNT.”
As part of his role at the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, Keller oversees an annual budget of more than $1.7 billion, according to the news release.
“Across the nation, not many universities have the scale, capabilities, and potential of the University of North Texas,” Keller said. “For the Dallas-Fort Worth area and across the state, UNT is uniquely positioned to expand opportunities through innovative, excellent programs and strategic partnerships.”
Keller is a sixth-generation Texan with decades of experience in state budget, policy, university administration and fundraising. In his time as commissioner he worked on developing the state’s strategic plan for higher education, “Building a Talent Strong Texas.” Some of the plan’s focuses are on accelerating innovation and increasing financial aid.
Prior to serving on the coordinating board, Keller was deputy to the system president for strategy and policy and a professor of practice at the University of Texas at Austin.
He earned degrees from the University of Notre Dame and Georgetown University. From 2005 to 2015, Keller served as an intelligence officer in the U.S. Navy Reserve.
He and his wife, Gena Nivens Keller, live in Austin with their three children.
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