The new elections marked the end of an era. For over ten years, the fortunes of the long-established association had been guided by Prof Dr Wolfgang König as Chairman and the Thuringian Minister for Social Affairs, Dr Claus Zeh, as his deputy. Yesterday, the members elected Wolfgang Schwerdtfeger, Administrative Director of the Nordhausen Theatre / Sondershausen Orchestra, as Chairman and Dr Sabine Riebel as his deputy on the recommendation of the outgoing Board. Lutz Herfurt, Detlef Schmidt and Arndt Schelenhaus were unanimously elected by the members to strengthen the new board. The outgoing Board of Directors, which had itself initiated the generational change, is now largely moving to the Board of Trustees of the association and will remain with the new Board of Directors in an advisory capacity. In his new role, Wolfgang Schwerdtfeger expressed his thanks for the many years of commitment shown by the deserving Nordhäuser members. The Scientific Association, under the leadership of the two chairmen König and Zeh, has done itself the greatest honour through its tireless commitment to Nordhausen as a university location. "Without your commitment, Hochschulstadt would be on the entrance signs of another municipality in northern Thuringia today," said the new chairman, summarising the outgoing board's services to Nordhausen. The Rector of Nordhausen University of Applied Sciences, Prof Dr Jörg Wagner, joined in the congratulations and expressed his hope that the outgoing Executive Board would not let up in its commitment to the university. "A graduation ceremony without Drs König and Zeh would be inconceivable," said the FHN Rector.

The aim of the new board is now to enrich the membership structure of the association with FHN graduates and thus serve as a platform for alumni relations at the university. At the same time, the Academic Association will once again make its presence felt in Nordhausen's events calendar.

PM from 08.06.2006