Susan Heegaard has served as president of the Midwestern Higher Education Compact since 2018. Prior to that she worked as a senior consultant with HCM Strategists, a public policy firm, and the Lumina Foundation Strategy Labs. She was also a vice president and education team leader for the St. Paul based Bush Foundation.
Heegaard was the Minnesota Commissioner for Higher Education from 2004-2009, guided policy under two governors and a U.S. senator, worked for the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce, the Minnesota Private College Council, the Minnesota Department of Education and Minnesota Planning Agency. Heegaard holds a J.D. from Mitchell Hamline College of Law and a B.A. in Economics and Government from Skidmore College.