Saint Paul – Governor Tim Pawlenty announced today that Susan Heegaard, Director of the Minnesota Office of Higher Education, is leaving her post on February 5, 2009 to join the Bush Foundation, a St. Paul-based foundation, as Vice President and team leader for educational achievement, one of its three core initiatives.

“Susan has done excellent work leading efforts to improve Minnesota’s robust higher education system,” Governor Pawlenty said. “She has brought enthusiasm and a collaborative spirit to her job. We thank her for her service and wish her well in her new position.”

Since her appointment in March 2004, Heegaard has been instrumental in implementing several new postsecondary initiatives for the Pawlenty administration including:

• Implementing the first statewide accountability system and annual report for higher education;

• Establishing a campus of the University of Minnesota presence in downtown Rochester, as well as a strong research collaborative between the University of Minnesota and the Mayo Clinic;

• Guiding the development of Centers of Excellence, or flagship programs, at Minnesota State Colleges and Universities; and

• Developing the Achieve Scholarship, a financial aid program for Minnesota high school graduates who complete a rigorous course of study in high school.

Prior to her leadership of the Minnesota Office of Higher Education, Heegaard was a senior policy advisor to Governor Pawlenty. She has held leadership positions at the Minnesota Private College Council and the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce. Heegaard also served in state government throughout most of the 1990s, first managing federal strategy in Washington, D.C. for Governor Arne Carlson’s office, then as education liaison in the Governor’s Office and later as the director of inter-government affairs for Minnesota Department of Education. She served as an aide to U.S. Senator David Durenberger in 1993 and 1994.

Heegaard holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Skidmore College in Saratoga Springs, New York, and a Juris Doctorate from William Mitchell College of Law in St. Paul. The Minnesota Office of Higher Education is a cabinet-level state agency providing students with financial aid programs and information to help them gain access to postsecondary education. The agency serves as the state's clearinghouse for data, research and analysis on postsecondary enrollment, financial aid, finance and trends.

The Minnesota State Grant program, which is administered by the agency, is a need-based tuition assistance program for Minnesota students. The agency also oversees tuition reciprocity programs, a student loan program, Minnesota's 529 college savings program, licensing and an early awareness outreach initiative for youth. Through collaboration with systems and institutions, the agency assists in the development of the state's education technology infrastructure and library programs.