Susan Lawrence

Vice Chancellor, Government Relations

Susan Lawrence serves as the vice chancellor for government relations for the 12-campus University System of Maryland (USM) working between the Annapolis and Baltimore offices. She began her career in higher education at the University of Maryland, Baltimore as Director of Government Affairs.

Susan is a graduate of the University of Maryland, College Park and holds a B.A. in political science. She began his career in government relations in 1993 as a member of the Maryland Association of Counties team before joining State Senator Mac Middleton as his legislative aide in 1995. She later became Chief of Staff to the Senate Finance Committee Chair during his 16-year tenure culminating in 24 years of service working for the Maryland State Senate.

She has been a member of the USM’s State Relations Council since 2019 and served as chair of the Administrative and Finance Subcommittee identifying legislative proposals related to the subcommittee’s work and, in collaboration with colleagues, formulating positions to present before the legislature.

Susan has an expansive network of colleagues in the executive branch as well as the legislature and has worked closely with state agency leadership and with personnel in the administrations of six Maryland governors, spanning over 30 years.

Susan resides in Annapolis, MD, has two daughters and 5 grandchildren.