Mary K. Surridge is North Park University’s 10th president and has served since the 2018–19 academic year. The first woman to serve as North Park’s president, she has brought to life a new era of leadership, engagement, and vision, with her conviction that in the sum of the university’s three distinctives—Christian, city-centered, and intercultural—North Park finds its unique value, competitive advantage, and opportunity to emerge as the model for Christian higher education in 21st-century America.
Surridge brings to the presidency a wealth of leadership experiences in higher education. Before becoming president, in a career at North Park that spanned more than 20 years, she served as vice president for advancement, oversaw undergraduate enrollment, and coached women’s basketball. As advancement vice president, Surridge led Campaign North Park, the most ambitious fundraising campaign in the school’s history. It raised $63 million in financial commitments, including $41 million to construct the Nancy and G. Timothy Johnson Center for Science and Community Life, which opened in 2014.
Before her North Park tenure, Surridge was associate director of planned and major gifts at Northwestern University, director of residence life and student activities at Concordia University, and dean of students at Marian University. At Concordia, she earned a master’s degree in student personnel administration. As an undergraduate at Northwestern, Surridge played Division I basketball and earned a bachelor’s degree in speech communication. Also at Northwestern, she became involved with the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. “My faith became personal and real,” she said, “and my daily walk with Jesus truly began.”
Her sports and communications background led to internship experiences in professional sports. She helped with fan requests, marketing and promotions, game broadcasts, and other duties with the Chicago White Sox. She also worked in the front office of the Milwaukee Bucks, working for the head coach and in promotions.
“I draw on every single one of those experiences,” she said. “Athletics, enrollment, recruiting, advancement, student affairs, and student development work are all essential pieces for the future of higher education.”
Surridge grew up in Horicon, Wisconsin, the middle of five siblings. A three-sport athlete in high school, she played in the band and was the sports editor of the school paper. From 1998–2008, she was also a full-time parent to her daughter, Jessie, leading her homeschool education through the fourth grade. Surridge and her husband, Jack Surridge, who served as North Park’s longtime athletic director and professor of genetics, are members of North Park Covenant Church.