President Accepts SUNY Position

University of Cincinnati President Nancy L. Zimpher has accepted the position of chancellor for the State University of New York system. The president notified the university's students, faculty and staff of this decision by email today. The text of her email appears below. The chair of the UC Board of Trustees also communicated by email to the campus community about plans for the transition. His email appears below.

President's Letter:

TO:       The UC Community
FROM:  Nancy L. Zimpher, President

I have been offered, and have accepted, a new and challenging opportunity.  I will become the Chancellor of the State University of New York (SUNY) system, with my start date tentatively set for June 1.

SUNY is the nation’s largest comprehensive system of public higher education and represents an extraordinary, new challenge for me.  SUNY’s interest is an acknowledgment of the tremendous progress and success that the University of Cincinnati has achieved: improving academic quality, student satisfaction, accountability, financial stability, connections throughout the city, research growth, and collaborative endeavors on a regional, state, national and international level.

Five and a half years ago, I was truly fortunate to be selected as UC’s 25th president. Working together across all sectors of the university, we have made great strides in our UC|21 goals, and our success is an accomplishment shared by all – students, faculty, staff, alumni, donors, and a myriad of external partners.  Many of the changes we have made are now so much a part of the university that they are much bigger than one person or one leader.  I can say with unwavering confidence that the University of Cincinnati, as a major research institution and the largest employer in this region, stands in an excellent position to build on its achievements and will continue to make a transformative impact on the world.  Our Proudly Cincinnati campaign, the largest in UC history, is on target to achieving its goal and has very able and supportive leadership to guide it.

While I look forward to my SUNY appointment with excitement, I will miss the many students, faculty, employees, colleagues, friends, alumni and supporters I have come to know at UC. I will miss Cincinnati’s wonderful skyline along with its beautiful rolling hills and picturesque river that remind me so much of my hometown of Gallipolis in southeastern Ohio.

I want to thank the entire UC and Cincinnati community, especially the Board of Trustees, for their tremendous support and patience during this selection process.  But most of all I want to say what a privilege it has been to be able to work with each and everyone who cares deeply about UC and strives to make it the best it can be.

Board Chair's Letter:

To:       University of Cincinnati Community
From:  H.C. Buck Niehoff
            Chair, University of Cincinnati Board of Trustees

The University of Cincinnati Board of Trustees congratulates Nancy Zimpher on her appointment as Chancellor of the State University of New York (SUNY) system. The chancellorship presents exceptional challenges as well as the opportunity to influence the future of American higher education by leading the largest comprehensive public higher education system in the United States. In our association with Dr. Zimpher, we have learned that she accepts challenge forthrightly and with an admirable array of skills. Obviously, this aptitude and her record of success here were very attractive to New York.

There is no question that the University of Cincinnati has benefitted from Dr. Zimpher’s leadership. We had hoped to enjoy her continued leadership but understand and appreciate her interest in this new opportunity. Because of Dr. Zimpher’s efforts, however, the University of Cincinnati is positioned for future success. It is time to begin steps that will lead to the selection of our next president.

The Board of Trustees will immediately initiate a transition process. This will involve actions to ensure mission continuity, including the identification of an interim president to be in place upon President Zimpher's departure, which will tentatively occur on June 1, 2009. We will convene a search committee to select our next president as described in University Rule 10-6-01. As this transition proceeds, you will be kept informed of progress and of opportunities to become involved in the transition.

The University of Cincinnati is a better place today, thanks to President Zimpher’s leadership. We must remember that our current success is built on the efforts of all of us, and we will all be working together in this transition to our next president.  We expect that, because of UC’s stature and recent progress, our search will attract top-caliber talent that will continue to advance the university’s greatness.