Kansas University Chancellor Bernadette Gray-Little has been elected as chairwoman of the Board of Directors of the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities.

The association announced Gray-Little’s nomination to the position during its annual meeting Monday in Indianapolis, according to an announcement from KU.

The association is a research, policy and advocacy organization aimed at strengthening and advancing the work of public universities in the U.S., Canada and Mexico, according to KU. Members include more than 230 public research universities, land-grant institutions, state university systems and affiliated organizations.

Gray-Little was named to the association’s executive committee in 2013.

KU has been a member of the association for many years, according to KU spokesman Andy Hyland. In June, KU was named to the association’s 2015 class of Innovation and Economic Prosperity Universities, a distinction valid for 10 years.

Association President Peter McPherson, in KU’s press release, called Gray-Little one of the hardest working and most innovative leaders in higher education.

“We are delighted that she has been selected as the next chair of the board of directors for APLU, which will provide her an avenue to drive progress in public higher education not just at the University of Kansas but throughout the country,” he said.