In response to Chancellor Guskiewicz’s announcement that he has accepted an offer to become Michigan State University’s president, Chair of the Faculty Beth Moracco sent the following message to all faculty. The email can be viewed at this link.
Dear colleagues:
Today we learned that our chancellor will step down on January 12, 2024. Though we have known for several weeks that this news was a possibility, it was still difficult to hear. The enthusiastic “yes” votes expressed by the MSU Board of Trustees during their meeting to approve his appointment this morning demonstrate that they know how lucky they are, but their gain is our great loss.
As I wrote on November 27, there has been an outpouring of support for Kevin’s steady and experienced leadership during an exceptionally tumultuous time in Carolina’s history. I had hoped he would stay, but now that his decision to leave has been made, we must turn our attention to navigating this transition. With Kevin’s departure date of January 12th, I anticipate that an interim chancellor will be appointed soon.
During times of rapid transition, it is especially important that our senior administrators have deep experience with University leadership. It’s my expectation that the interim appointment will be someone with both the background and the leadership skills necessary to step into the highest position on our campus.
In the months to come, a search committee for Carolina’s next permanent chancellor will be named. In accordance with UNC System policy, it will include representation from faculty, staff, and students, as well as other stakeholders. I know that we faculty look forward to participating meaningfully in this process, in keeping with our campus’ strong tradition of shared governance and our expectation of a strong faculty voice, as expressed in the Faculty Council’s 2021 resolution “On the Hiring of Chancellors.”
I know many of you will join me in being tremendously sorry to see Kevin go. I hope you will join me in expressing our deepest gratitude to him for his nearly three decades of outstanding service to our campus, and in wishing the best for him and his family.
Sincerely,
Beth
