UNC-Chapel Hill Chancellor Kevin Guskiewicz was approved and introduced as the president at Michigan State University on Friday. He will begin in the role of the East Lansing university’s 22nd president on March 4.
The Michigan State Board of Trustees called a special meeting for Friday morning to discuss a lone personnel action — which several Michigan-based outlets had previously reported was to approve the hire of Guskiewicz in an unanimous vote. David Jesse of the Chronicle of Higher Education first reported the meeting and Michigan State’s expected approval of Guskiewicz in a post on social media.
The news comes after weeks of speculation around the former dean of UNC’s College of Arts and Sciences’ future, as Guskiewicz was first linked to Michigan State’s presidency in a student newspaper report. The State News revealed he was the sole finalist for the position after the university’s Board of Trustees identified two top options and the other person, Taylor Eighmy of UTSA, dropped out.
Guskiewicz sent a message to the UNC campus community shortly after the Michigan State vote on Friday, saying he will formally leave his position on January 12.
“I have loved leading Carolina for nearly five years,” he wrote. “We have accomplished so much together, and I am proud of where Carolina is today. We have faced challenging times, but also incredible moments of opportunity. Thank you for standing shoulder-to-shoulder with me to ensure our status as the leading global public research university we have aspired to be. It has not always been easy, but as I have often said — easy is boring. We certainly have not been bored.”
Kevin Guskiewicz speaks to the Michigan State Board of Trustees and campus community on Zoom following his hiring on December 8, 2023. He will leave UNC after more than four years as chancellor.
Guskiewicz’s hiring away from Chapel Hill means UNC will be left to conduct its first chancellor search and make an interim choice since 2019. Guskiewicz was initially selected for the interim role in early 2019 after Carol Folt’s departure in the wake of removing a Confederate statue from the Chapel Hill campus, and was ultimately named permanent chancellor months later. He served as the 12th chancellor in UNC’s 78-year-old history of the position.
During his tenure at Carolina, Guskiewicz’s administration oversaw several major undertakings. Among them were the university’s responses to the COVID-19 pandemic, ongoing removal and reckoning with symbols of white supremacy on campus, the execution of a $5 billion capital campaign, and launch of the Carolina Across 100 initiative to address major issues impacting North Carolinians.
Classes for UNC’s fall semester finished on Wednesday, with Guskiewicz making his usual appearances on campus and conducting an end-of-semester interview with the Daily Tar Heel. The past few months brought additional challenges to campus and his administration, as the university’s safety protocols are being re-examined after a fatal shooting within a UNC lab. Guskiewicz’s administration has also been overhauling its admissions practices in response to the U.S. Supreme Court ruling against the Chapel Hill university in a nine-year-old lawsuit that challenged the use of racial data in admissions standards. Part of that response, which drew criticism from some UNC trustees, included announcing a plan for reduced tuition for North Carolina-native students in the days after the ruling.
Prior to his leadership roles as dean and then chancellor, Guskiewicz’s research on brain trauma and concussion earned national recognition, like receiving grants from the National Football League and co-directing the Matthew Gfeller Sport-Related TBI Research Center.
“I have been privileged to serve as your chancellor since 2019 with the steady and strong commitment from our world class faculty, visionary leadership team, dedicated staff, talented student leaders and thousands of passionate alumni and donors who have supported Carolina and our shared values,” Guskiewicz wrote on Friday to UNC. “You are Carolina’s legacy and its future, and I know you will continue to be passionately public and committed to our vision. You will prepare our students to tackle the grand challenges facing our world. For 230 years, our University has been a shining light and an example of the promise of public education in this country. I am confident that together, our students, faculty, staff, alumni and the amazing supporters of our University, will continue to accomplish great things in the years to come.”
Thank you for leading our University for nearly five years. Best of luck at @michiganstateu https://t.co/vsqGnUFoXC
— UNC-Chapel Hill (@UNC) December 8, 2023
Michigan State’s presidency vacancy came as the university is seeking to recover from a series of sexual misconduct cases and disfunction within its board of trustees. The latest president, Samuel Stanley Jr., resigned in October 2022 and cited having “lost confidence in the action of the current Board of Trustees” after serving in the role for three years. Stanley was the third president at the school in five years, and its current interim president — Teresa Woodruff — is not seeking the permanent role according to the Associated Press.
Guskiewicz faced his own turbulence from the UNC Board of Trustees and UNC System leadership at times as well. Beyond some pushback from trustees regarding the Supreme Court case and removal of building namesakes, his administration faced criticism in 2021 for the UNC School of Journalism and Media planning to hire journalist Nikole Hannah-Jones to its faculty. The UNC trustees significantly cut down her position and drew out an approval of Hannah-Jones’ tenure request before she ultimately turned it down and accepted a role at Howard University. At the time, the UNC Faculty Council passed a resolution in support of the chancellor and stability at the school following rumors of Guskiewicz being forced out of the role.
Guskiewicz’s departure means the UNC System is now tasked with finding an interim chancellor and then permanent replacement. While the job used to exclusively be the responsibility of the UNC System President, the statewide university system’s Board of Governors approved a policy change in May that brings in other voices. President Peter Hans will sit on a 13-member search committee — which he will also select. That group will conduct the search, vet candidates, and present a final “unranked slate of no fewer than three candidates” to Hans. From there, Hans will make a choice from that slate and present it to the Board of Governors for a vote. The full policy can be found here.
UNC Board of Trustees Chair John Preyer shared a statement through the university’s media relations about Guskiewicz’s departure from the university. He said:
“Our board has collaborated successfully with Chancellor Guskiewicz on a range of important initiatives, including campus budget reform, student advocacy, career services, free speech, academic freedom, and the new School of Civic Life and Leadership. We thank Kevin for his long and notable service to the University, and we wish him and his family well in their new pursuits.
“A university of the stature of UNC-Chapel Hill deserves a thoughtful and thorough national search for its next chancellor, beginning immediately upon the appointment of an interim chief executive. The trustees, the faculty, and other key members of the Carolina family stand ready to participate fully in the search. My hope is that President Hans will consider interim candidates with strong Carolina ties and stellar credentials who would keep the University moving forward on all fronts until a new chancellor is appointed. Given the challenges and opportunities the University faces, a steady hand through the transition will be important for everyone involved.”
Hans also shared a statement once Guskiewicz’s hire became official on Friday.
“Chancellor Guskiewicz has led UNC-Chapel Hill with grace and goodwill through some very difficult moments, and he’s leaving the University in stronger shape than when he arrived,” wrote the UNC System president. “I join faculty, staff, students, and alumni at Carolina in deep appreciation for his leadership. Kevin is a brilliant researcher, a kind colleague, and a mentor to many young people. The Guskiewicz family have been good friends to me and I know that Kevin and Amy will remain devoted Tar Heels.”
Featured image via UNC-Chapel Hill/Jon Gardiner
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