In Memoriam: Molly Corbett Broad 1941-2023

Molly Corbett Broad, the first woman to serve as president of the University of North Carolina System and the former president of the American Council on Education, died on January 2. She was 81 years old.

A native of Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, Broad earned a bachelor’s degree in economics at Syracuse University in New York. She held a master’s degree in economics from Ohio State University.

Broad began her career as an administrator at Syracuse University for 14 years. In 1985, she was named CEO of the Arizona State University System. From 1993 to 1997, Broad was executive vice chancellor for the California State University System. In 1997, she was named president of the University of North Carolina System, a post she held until 2005. In 2008, she became the first woman to lead the American Council on Education. Broad stepped down as president of the American Council on Education in 2017.

Peter Hans, president of the University of North Carolina System, stated that “Molly Corbett Broad was a trailblazer and a visionary. She came to North Carolina at a pivotal moment for our public universities, laying the groundwork for growth and progress across our state. She oversaw a historic $3.1 billion higher education bond and created the state’s first need-based scholarship program, opening the doors of higher education to far more North Carolina students. She will be remembered as one of the giants of American higher education.”