UNC Chancellor Kevin Guskiewicz will leave for MSU, reports say
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UNC Chancellor Kevin Guskiewicz will be leaving North Carolina to become the next president of Michigan State University, according to multiple news outlets, including the Detroit News and the Chronicle of Higher Education.
- MSU's president will make the official announcement Friday at 8am, the outlets reported.
Why it matters: Guskiewicz has been at the helm of Carolina for numerous high-profile controversies, and he's faced criticism from the state legislature in his five-year tenure.
- Faculty on campus have expressed concerns that Guskiewicz's departure could lead to more instability at the state's flagship university, and wrote a letter to him last month asking him to stay.
Zoom in: Guskiewicz — a neuroscientist and concussion researcher turned chancellor — managed the fallout of the toppling of the Chapel Hill campus' Silent Sam Confederate monument, a pandemic, the university's failure to grant award-winning journalist Nikole Hannah-Jones tenure and regular pushback from the state's Republican led General Assembly.
What they're saying: Gov. Roy Cooper, a Democrat, said Guskiewicz's looming departure is evidence the state's reputation for higher education is hurting.
- "As the nation's leading public university, UNC attracts worldwide leaders to the office of chancellor, but meddling from legislative appointees is driving them away," he wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.
- "Because the GOP legislature seized University Trustee appointments and installed hard right appointees on the UNC Board of Governors, our reputation is beginning to suffer."
Between the lines: Guskiewicz's next gig will be far from smooth sailing.
- He'll trade Chapel Hill for another scandal-plagued campus, where there's been an effort to oust the chair of Michigan State's board, an investigation into who leaked the name of a woman who accused the school's former football coach of sexual harassment and lingering fallout from the Larry Nassar scandal, a former sports physician at MSU who sexually assaulted athletes, the Detroit News wrote.
- Gukiewicz told MSU faculty he would only take the job if that school's board promises not to interfere, the State News reported.
Be smart: The news that Guskiewicz is headed to Michigan isn't a total surprise, as news leaked last month that he was the sole candidate remaining in MSU's search for a new president after another candidate dropped out.
- Guskiewicz confirmed those rumors, saying in a statement at the time: "Through the years, a variety of professional opportunities have been presented to me. My family and I must weigh each one, and we are weighing this one."
What's next: When Guskiewicz leaves, Peter Hans, UNC System's president, would appoint an interim chancellor before submitting a final candidate for the role to the UNC Board of Governors at a future date.
- One potential candidate, the Chronicle of Higher Education reports, is UNC Board of Governors member Lee Roberts. He also co-founded SharpVue Capital and served as former state budget director under Gov. Pat McCrory.