Professor Manfred Bayer Is the New President of TU Dortmund University

The Elective Assembly of TU Dortmund University met in the Main Lecture Hall under unusual circumstances. The Assembly, which comprises the Senate and the University Council, was allowed to convene despite the coronavirus crisis. This is because coming together for rectorate elections is considered an act of self-administration highly important in terms of university policy and therefore does not fall under the ban on events in accordance with North Rhine-Westphalia’s SARS-CoV-2 Containment Ordinance. With 700 seats, the University’s largest lecture hall was big enough for the 60 members to keep a sufficient distance from each other. The election officers wore masks and gloves when they passed the microphone through the rows as points were raised and when counting the ballot papers. The broader public was able to follow the election online via live stream. It was already clear beforehand that nobody would be allowed to shake the elected candidate’s hand.

Congratulations all round

Professor Manfred Bayer achieved an overwhelming majority straight away in both assembly bodies. The University Council voted unanimously for him and 26 of the 27 senate members voted in his favor. “I’m very pleased that with Manfred Bayer we’ve been able to attract a scientist and lecturer of the highest international acclaim for the office of President,” said Professor Ernst Rank, the University Council’s chairman. “As chairman of the Senate for many years, my colleague Manfred Bayer has earned the respect of all four groups at the University,” said Professor Lorenz Schwachhöfer, the Senate’s acting chairman. It was thanks to Bayer’s ability as a mediator that the Senate had also remained united in the debate on a new university constitution, he added.

Current officeholder Professor Ursula Gather also extended her warmest congratulations to her successor on his election. “I’m very pleased that I can hand over this office to such an experienced colleague,” she said. “I wish him good luck in everything he does.” Albrecht Ehlers, Chancellor of TU Dortmund University, added his own good wishes. “I’ve already worked together extremely well with Manfred Bayer in his role as chairman of the Senate. I look forward to continuing our pleasant and productive cooperation in this new constellation.” Professor Bayer himself gave a glimpse of the direction in which he wants to steer TU Dortmund University in the future: “The goal must be to further optimize the good conditions for students at TU Dortmund University and at the same time strengthen our considerable research potential in order to stay in the race.”

Outstanding research and international networks

Originally from Franconia, Professor Manfred Bayer was appointed as professor for “Experimental Physics with a Focus on Spectroscopy of Condensed Matter” at TU Dortmund University in 2002 at the age of 36. His outstanding research results appear regularly in renowned scientific journals. Professor Bayer has a large network of international contacts and – as spokesperson of the first German-Russian Collaborative Research Center of the German Research Foundation – especially cultivates the partnership with St. Petersburg. He has been honored several times for his excellent research work, among others as Fellow of the American Physical Society (2012) and Member of the Russian Academy of Sciences (2017).

As a UA Ruhr professor, Manfred Bayer is also in close contact with the neighboring universities in the Ruhr area. As co-initiator of the popular lecture series “Between Breakfast and Borussia”, he also knows how to inspire a broad audience for physics topics. There is one thing he will miss after 1 September and Bayer knows that already: The view from the Faculty of Physics of the most spectacular stadium in the world.

Interview with newly elected president

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