Folt will oversee UNC's undergraduate and graduate programs and secure funding from stakeholders, including the state of North Carolina. Folt will assume the position on July 1, succeeding Holden Thorp, who announced his resignation last September.
Wade Hargrove, the chair of UNC's Board of Trustees and the chancellor search committee, said the university's history of only 11 chancellors shows the strength of the university's leadership. UNC is the country's oldest public university.
"It is difficult to have a conversation with Dr. Folt without feeling excited about her passion for learning and higher education," Hargrove said. "She brought that to our conversations each time, and we think she will inspire confidence from within all of the constituents of our university."
Dean of the College Charlotte Johnson said Folt's selection speaks highly for the College, showing that faculty and the administration can impact the College before stepping into a larger role.
"It's a huge honor every time a Dartmouth person gets tapped for a role like this. It speaks volumes about the kinds of people who work and teach at Dartmouth and all that they've accomplished," Johnson said.
Hanlon will assume the College's presidency on June 10, a month earlier than originally expected. Citing this administrative transition, Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid Maria Laskaris said the nature of Folt's departure is not unprecedented.
The search committee was drawn to Folt for her passion for students, experience managing scarce resources and ability to balance institutional budgets.
"She has a level of energy that is infectious and a warmth of personality these qualities just came through and impressed all of us greatly," Hargove said.
As chancellor, Folt must communicate with students, faculty, staff, alumni, trustees and North Carolina public officials, said Will Leimenstoll, UNC's student body president who served on the university's 21-member search committee.
The committee was representative of campus constituencies and performed a national search of a "very impressive and deep pool of candidates" over several months, Hargrove said.
The committee invited Folt to campus, and her considerable experience in higher education, among other qualities, impressed constituents, Hargrove said. As a graduate of the University of California, Santa Barbara, and the University of California, Davis, Folt is familiar with the qualities of public universities.
Leimenstoll said Folt demonstrated this understanding when he gave her a tour of the institution's campus.
Folt's leadership experience at Dartmouth revealed a depth and range of expertise that the committee thought would be important at Chapel Hill, Hargrove said. Her background in scientific research matches the university's leadership in higher education and research.
Johnson said Folt is dedicated to teaching and researching.
"There's a lot of opportunity for Folt to become steeped in the UNC Chapel Hill tradition but also to help the university move forward because she is a progressive leader," she said.
By securing funding from both private donors and North Carolina state legislators, Folt will play a critical role in controlling the university's "complex enterprise," Hargrove said.
UNC received 19 percent of its funding this year from the state. In addition to garnering state funding, Folt must attract top tier students and distinguished faculty.
"It will require not only sophisticated management skills but also communication skills with students, faculty, alumni, donors, the general assembly and the public," Hargrove said.
North Carolina's changing political climate and UNC's status as a public school will pose an additional challenge, as Folt must also work with non-traditional stakeholders.
Reductions in state university funding will lead to increased tuition, which will lead to accessibility concerns for those in financial need, Liemenstoll said.
"The question is how we're going to be accessible to all students academically gifted enough to come here, because as tuition goes up, it becomes harder and harder to do that," Liemenstoll said. "We want to encourage students from rural counties in North Carolina to prestigious institutions in the Northeast to come here, and that's hard to do when you can't provide financial aid."
While there are differences between the College and UNC in terms of size of the student body, with approximately 29,000 students at UNC, both institutions share a commitment to academic excellence, Hargrove said. The committee believes that Folt demonstrated that commitment, which Hargrove said he considers to be the single most important quality for a chancellor.
Liemenstoll cited the institutions' relative age and role in the country's educational history as other similarities.
"We at Carolina really hold shared governance as a very important principle, which is very similar to Dartmouth as well," he said. "We felt that she really views public universities as her home and where she feels the most comfortable, so she immediately fit with our culture here."
Folt acknowledged these similarities in a speech at UNC on Friday.
"We really do have some strong similarities in the governance of our institutions," Folt said. "We believe deeply in faculty governance and make sure we work together to provide the absolute best education."
Although Johnson said no faculty members knew about Folt's imminent departure due to the confidential nature of administrative appointments, she is not surprised by the decision, which she called a "logical next step" for Folt.
"She's at a stage in her career where it made sense for her to be applying for presidencies," Johnson said.
Laskaris said Folt's selection is a natural transition given her various accomplishments in roles at Dartmouth.
"It's a real testament to all the work she's done here," Laskaris said. "At her core, she is someone who really cares deeply about students and the learning process."
Laskaris said worked closely with Folt for the past six years on strategic planning, admissions and financial aid.
Kristen Clifford '13, moderator of Palaeopitus senior society, said that the group operated under the assumption that Folt would return to her role as Provost following Hanlon's appointment.
Hanlon was expected to assume his presidency July 1, but, following Folt's appointment, a campus email from Board of Trustees chairman Steve Mandel announced that Hanlon would arrive on campus on June 10. Johnson said Hanlon planned on starting directly after Commencement prior to the news of Folt's departure.
"The timing is based on the fact that President Hanlon would like to participate in reunions, and it makes a lot of sense for him to be on campus and meeting alumni," Johnson said.
The senior administrative team is prepared to help Hanlon transition into his role as president, Johnson said. She expressed certainty that Folt will continue to aid in this transition before his arrival. Laskaris said Folt has already worked to ensure Hanlon's smooth progression to the presidency.
"There has been a whole variety of conversations with a range of faculty, administrators and trustees," Laskaris said. "The transition is well underway in terms of helping him come up to speed, and of course, it is going to be ongoing. I think he will rely greatly on faculty and administrative leaders."
The College will conduct a national search for the College's next provost and Hanlon will appoint an interim provost before the position is filled. Clifford said she believes that this transition will have minimal effect on daily campus life.
Johnson said that despite changes to the administration, Dartmouth looks to the future.
"We'll be lacking her unique set of talents and her enthusiasm and passion for Dartmouth," Johnson said. "But we'll continue to move forward. Dartmouth is a place where we continue to move forward despite the loss of a leader or member of the administration."
Staff writer Sean Connolly contributed reporting.
