University of North Texas System chancellor, and first woman in the role, to retire

Lesa Roe, who became the first woman to lead the University of North Texas System in 2017, announced her plans to retire Monday. Roe will retire effective March 31, 2022, after spending four years within the UNT System and 33 years as an electrical engineer and executive at NASA, according to a press release from UNT. “It has been a great privilege to lead the UNT System in service to our students, the Dallas-Fort Worth Region and the great state of Texas,” Roe said in the release. “Thank you to our institutions and the local community for embracing me — I’m very proud of all that we have accomplished, and I look forward to following the UNT System’s continued progress and cheering on the Mean Green.”

As chancellor, Roe has been responsible for all operational aspects of the UNT system, including overseeing a $1.3 billion budget, more than 14,000 employees and the system’s campuses. Under Roe’s leadership, the press release said, UNT’s System has grown to a record enrollment of more than 47,000 students for the 2020-2021 academic year between its three member institutions — the University of North Texas in Denton, UNT Health Science Center in Fort Worth and UNT Dallas. UNT also set records for degrees awarded, philanthropic fundraising, endowments for scholarships and research expenditures under Roe. She also oversaw the transition to virtual learning as the COVID-19 pandemic hit. The UNT Health Science Center established multiple drive-through COVID-19 testing centers and helped the Tarrant County Public Health Department with contact tracing and epidemiological issues during the pandemic. The UNT Health Science Center also led Tarrant County’s vaccination efforts.