Laurie Burns McRobbie
A Short Biographical Sketch of Laurie Burns McRobbie, First Lady of Indiana University
Laurie Burns McRobbie brings a wealth of experience to her role as IU’s first lady. During her more than 25 years as a technologist, she has served in numerous leadership positions, most recently as an executive director with Internet2, where she contributed substantially to building the Internet2 community and its governance. She has been 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.
Appointed in 2008 as an adjunct faculty member in the IU School of Informatics, Laurie also works with local and state groups to advance science and math literacy among historically underserved populations and their participation in STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) disciplines.
Laurie received a bachelor’s degree in history with high distinction from the University of Michigan in 1978, where she also helped to establish a major in women’s studies. Later she co-chaired the university’s Commission for Women and served on the President’s Advisory Commission on Women’s Issues.
Laurie serves on the boards of the IU Center on Philanthropy, the award-winning WonderLab science museum, the Society of Friends of Music, and Middle Way House, a domestic violence social services agency where she also chairs the New Wings Community partnership, Middle Way’s fundraising effort.
