Wouter Bos appointed Chair of the Supervisory Board
Wouter Bos has been appointed Chair of the VU Supervisory Board. He succeeds Ron Teerlink, whose second and final term expires on 1 July. In Wouter Bos, the Supervisory Board gains a chair with extensive administrative experience in both the public and private sectors. He is currently chair of the board at Menzis. Wouter Bos is very familiar with VU Amsterdam and its campus. He studied political science and economics at VU and served as chair of the Executive Board of VU Medical Centre from 2013 to 2018. The Supervisory Board has every confidence in his ability to provide direction as chair, whilst keeping VU’s core values in mind, and to maintain the right balance between proximity and independence, calm and focus, strategic vision and social engagement.
Emely de Vet appointed as member of the Supervisory Board
On 1 May 2026, Emely de Vet will join the Supervisory Board. She is Professor of Behavior Change, Health and Living Environment at Wageningen University & Research. Her research focuses on complex systemic issues relating to health, examining individual, social and environmental factors in their interplay. In addition to her academic work, Emely de Vet fulfils various societal roles. For instance, she is a member of the Health Council of the Netherlands and advises the World Health Organisation, where she is committed to translating scientific insights into national and international policies. The Supervisory board sees her as a strong systemic thinker with broad experience within universities, in both academic and administrative and managerial capacities. Within the Supervisory board, she will serve on the Quality Committee.
A strong addition in a changing context
In preparing these appointments, particular attention was paid to substantive expertise, experience and personal profile, as well as to complementarity within the Supervisory Board as a whole. The Board thus reflects the VU’s broad societal focus: knowledge and experience drawn from academia, governance, and industry.
The Supervisory Board emphasizes the importance of this reinforcement. Anne Marie van der Wijst: “The VU operates in a rapidly changing social context, facing major challenges such as pressure on funding, geopolitical uncertainty and increasing polarisation. This places high demands on governance and supervision. Wouter Bos and Emely de Vet understand these challenges and the role that the Supervisory Board plays in addressing them. With these appointments, we are back to full strength, we are ensuring continuity, and we look forward with confidence to working together in this new team.”
Careful appointment process
The new supervisory board members will undergo an introduction programme to familiarize themselves further with VU and its community. The appointments were prepared by a committee comprising members of the Supervisory Board, with advice from the Executive Board and the VU Joint Assembly. The Joint Assembly was also given the opportunity to respond to the proposed appointments, and the advisory committee of the VU Association Members’ Council provided feedback as well. The Supervisory Board’s appointments were approved by the VU Association Members’ Council.