On January 21, 2026, the Senate of Saarland University of Applied Sciences (htw saar) unanimously re-elected Professor Dr. Charis Förster as Vice President for Research, Knowledge and Technology Transfer on the recommendation of the President of htw saar, Prof. Dr.-Ing. Her second term of office begins on April 1, 2026 and ends on March 31, 2030.
Leonhard congratulated her on her re-election: "With her experience, strategic foresight and commitment, she stands for research with impact. Under her leadership, htw saar is sustainably strengthening its research profile."
With clear goals and a strong future profile, Förster wants to further develop the university as an innovative science location. A central project of her new term of office is the implementation of the right to award doctorates. This will sharpen htw saar's academic profile and increase its attractiveness for researchers and students. "The right to award doctorates is a decisive step towards strengthening our independence and visibility in the research landscape," emphasizes Förster.
She also wants to continue the successful research and transfer activities and consolidate the sustainable start-up culture at htw saar. The aim is to position the university as an engine for innovation and regional development, in close cooperation with FITT gGmbH, the Institute for Technology Transfer at Saarland University of Applied Sciences, and as a partner in the Startup factory.
Another focus is the expansion of future-oriented further education and training courses. These offerings promote transformative skills in business, science and society and strengthen the link between theory and practice.
Charis Förster was appointed to the professorship for Theory, Empiricism and Practice of Childhood Education at htw saar in 2007. She has shaped the profile of the Faculty of Social Sciences in various academic self-administration roles and headed it as Dean from 2018 to 2022. In cooperation with key players in professional practice, she is committed to the development of academic and part-time continuing education courses and degree programs, including with the Continuing Education Center Saar (CEC Saar, htw saar's continuing education institution).
Her research focuses on the quality of institutional education, care and upbringing in the field of childhood education as well as the importance and promotion of children's language skills in the context of educational processes and trajectories. While working at pädquis gGmbH (Berlin, Professor Dr. Wolfgang Tietze), she had the opportunity to prepare relevant projects from a professional and research methodological perspective. In current research projects, including in cooperation with Saarland University, she is investigating these topics in an interdisciplinary research team. Charis Förster was also a long-standing member of the htw saar research advisory board.
As Federal Chairwoman of the Pestalozzi-Fröbel Association (funded by the BMFSFJ), she was responsible for the nationwide networking of key players from politics, administration, studies, qualification and practice in the field of childhood education until 2022. In addition to relevant publications, it is above all decentralized federal conferences and dialogue events that promote the current interprofessional exchange.
Charis Förster studied psychology and theology in Leipzig and Berlin (graduating in 1996 and 1999) and completed her doctorate in 2003 under Prof. Dr. Ralf Schwarzer in an interdisciplinary research project (with Charité Berlin, among others) on a health psychology topic.