Vice President Susan Walton Accepts Position at Mayo Clinic

Susan Balcom Walton, Vice President for University and Public Affairs, has accepted a senior Public Affairs position at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota.  Her final day at UND will be April 6.

In her new role, Walton will provide leadership for development and execution of strategies supporting public affairs for the Mayo Clinic Health System, a family of clinics, hospitals and health care facilities serving over 60 communities and recognized as one of the most successful regional health care systems in the United States.  She will also provide leadership for Mayo Clinic’s enterprise-wide community relations activities.

Said Interim President Ed Schafer, “Susan has been a valuable member of the UND team.  We are excited for Susan and the new opportunity and know that Mayo Clinic will benefit from her work. The communications tools and strategies developed by the Division of University and Public Affairs have made an important contribution to UND. We have valued Susan’s experience and expertise and wish her well in her new role.”

Said Walton:  “This move is a great opportunity, but was also a very tough choice.  I’ve enjoyed working with my wonderful colleagues and supporting President Kelley and Interim President Schafer.  I hope to be able to apply my experience at UND to another world-class institution—the Mayo Clinic—that provides hope and healing to people the world over.”

She added, “I’m thrilled that I will be able to maintain my connection to higher education, as the Mayo Clinic offers graduate medical programs, including a School of Medicine.  An additional benefit of the job is that it will enable my husband and me to live much closer to family. That said, I plan to continue my connection with UND, and I look forward to becoming an alumna when my doctoral program concludes.”

President Shafer has announced that, following the conclusion of Walton’s time at UND, Peter Johnson, UND’s Executive Associate Vice President for University Relations, will assume the role of Interim Vice President for University and Public Affairs.