IU’s First Lady
Laurie Burns McRobbie
With a keen understanding of human relations, collaborative partnerships, and the power of technology to bring people together over long distances, Laurie Burns McRobbie is very well positioned for her role as Indiana University’s first lady.
Throughout a distinguished career, Laurie has been an advocate for women’s issues, the use of information technology in higher education, and advanced networking for research and technology. Recently appointed as an adjunct faculty member in the IU School of Informatics, she focuses on promoting and advancing science and math literacy, particularly among historically underserved populations. She also maintains an active role in women’s issues and in various community organizations and efforts.
While working at the University of Michigan in the mid-1980s and 1990s, Laurie co-chaired the university’s Commission for Women and served on the President’s Advisory Commission on Women’s Issues. These leadership positions were natural extensions of her role in helping establish the women’s studies major at Michigan when she was an undergraduate. She received a bachelor’s degree in history with honors and high distinction from the University of Michigan in 1978.
As she moved into information technology, Laurie’s background in the humanities and communications proved to be invaluable. During her more than 25 years as a technologist, Laurie held numerous management and executive positions with responsibilities for customer service and strategic partnerships. An excellent public speaker and writer, she served for four years as a faculty member in the Leadership Institute of EDUCAUSE, an association of colleges and universities dedicated to intelligent use of information technology in higher education. She also made significant contributions to the development of Internet2, the nation’s foremost advanced networking consortium.
As Internet2’s executive director of Member and Partner Relations, Laurie played a leading role in the evolution of Internet2’s governance and membership structure and building the Internet2 community beyond its initial membership base. She also helped grow the organization’s biannual member meetings into some of the premier advanced networking events in the United States and around the world.
Through her long experience at the University of Michigan, in a national higher education organization, and in her current role as IU first lady, she has gained a comprehensive view of the issues facing research universities in the 21st century.
Laurie serves on the boards of Middle Way House, a domestic violence social services agency, where she also chairs the New Wings Community Partnership Campaign, and the award-winning WonderLab science museum. Additionally, she is secretary of the board of the Society of Friends of Music and is a member of the Bloomington Rotary Club and the Bloomington Garden Club.
When not engaged with her family of six children or involved in various activities on IU's eight campuses and beyond, Laurie enjoys the abundance of musical and artistic happenings in the Bloomington and Indianapolis area.
