The Hochschule Niederrhein's Faculty of Applied Social Sciences has elected a new dean. From September 1, Prof. Dr. med. Anne-Friederike Hübener will head the faculty in Mönchengladbach. She replaces the long-standing Dean Prof. Dr. Michael Borg-Laufs, who had to give up the post for health reasons. Borg-Laufs had been in office for more than eleven years and had previously served as Dean of Studies for five years.

"The progress of a society is measured by how it strengthens social cohesion. As the new Dean, my goal is to further develop our faculties in a participatory and sustainable way. In doing so, I am focusing on a comprehensive orientation towards participation and the expansion of multidisciplinary perspectives. The new Office of the Dean wants to strengthen innovative teaching, committed research and practical learning experiences in order to enable students to find sustainable solutions to the social challenges of our time," says Anne-Friederike Hübener.

The 43-year-old was appointed to The Hochschule Niederrhein on April 1, 2019 and is now Professor of Social Medicine / Social Psychiatry in particular. Hübener is a double specialist: one in psychiatry and psychotherapy, the other in child and adolescent psychiatry and psychotherapy. She worked for several years as a doctor in clinics for child, adolescent and adult psychiatry and has completed further training in social work (community psychiatry), public health and quality management.

In 2023, Prof. Hübener was awarded the teaching prize of The Hochschule Niederrhein. She is intensively involved in participatory teaching education, most recently in the "TrialogLe" project funded by the Foundation for Innovation in University Teaching. Her didactic concepts, which promote self-directed and collaborative work, give students a multi-perspective view and are an important building block for professionalization for their future careers.