Provost Herman to be named interim chancellor By Sharita Forrest, Assistant Editor 217-244-1072; slforres@illinois.edu
President James J. Stukel will recommend that ProvostRichard Herman be appointed interim chancellor of the Urbana campus when Chancellor Nancy Cantor departs to become president and chancellor of Syracuse University. In a March 20 e-mail message to the campus community, Stukel announced his intention to make the recommendation to the UI Board of Trustees, who must approve the appointment. The board’s next scheduled meeting is set for June 17 in Chicago although a special meeting of the board or its executive committee could be called to address the recommendation sooner. Stukel said Herman is a seasoned administrator capable of providing the strong and stable leadership needed during a time when the university is losing two key administrators – Cantor and Stukel, who intends to retire in February 2005 – and the university faces the prospect of another lean budget year. Despite a state economic crisis that has eroded the university’s state funding in recent years, Herman has striven to uphold the campus’s reputation for academic excellence and public engagement, Stukel said. “Dr. Herman is highly respected by those who know him, both on and off campus,” Stukel said. Calling the opportunity to serve as interim chancellor an honor and a privilege, Herman said he looks forward to serving in that capacity. “I welcome the opportunity to help guide and shape the future of our campus,” Herman said. “Such a challenge would be the culmination of a life spent dedicated to higher education.” Herman said that he has developed a solid working relationship with the trustees that would allow them to work together for the common good of the Urbana campus. About Cantor’s departure, Herman said: “I have benefited personally from working with her, and I appreciate the passion and energy she has brought to her work. Nancy and I will work together throughout the spring to ensure a smooth and orderly transition.” Herman began his career with the university in October 1998 under Cantor’s predecessor, former Chancellor Michael Aiken. Before joining the UI’s staff as provost and vice chancellor for academic affairs, Herman served as dean of the College of Computer, Mathematical and Physical Sciences at the University of Maryland at College Park for eight years. Prior to his appointment at Maryland, Herman chaired the department of mathematics at Pennsylvania State University, after serving on the Penn State faculty. Herman began his teaching career as a mathematics professor at the University of California at Los Angeles in 1968. Herman earned a bachelor’s degree, cum laude, from Stevens Institute of Technology in 1963 and a doctorate in mathematics from the University of Maryland in 1967. A mathematician concentrating on mathematical physics and operator algebras, Herman’s research has been supported by the National Science Foundation and NATO. He has written or co-written numerous scientific articles and chaired the National Science Foundation’s Advisory Committee for the Directorate of Mathematical and Physical Sciences (1993-1997) and the Joint Policy Board for Mathematics (1991-1997).
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