MADISON, Wis. — University of Wisconsin System President Kevin Reilly announced his resignation on Tuesday, following a tumultuous six months that saw an angry backlash from the Republican-controlled Legislature over how the university was handling its money.
Reilly has served as president of the 26-campus, 182,000-student, UW System since 2004. He will leave in January to work part-time as an adviser for the American Council on Education and return to teaching.
Reilly, at a news conference to announce his departure, bemoaned what he called the “overheated partisanship in our political culture,” but said he had been thinking of leaving for months. He said the recent tumult in the Legislature, which included the chairman of the Assembly higher education committee calling for his resignation in April, had nothing to do with his decision.
Still, the Republican co-chairs of the Legislature’s budget committee issued a joint statement saying Reilly’s departure was an “exciting opportunity” for UW.
“They have a chance to start a new a new chapter,” Sen. Alberta Darling, R-River Hills, and Rep. John Nygren, R-Marinette, said in the statement. “New leadership will go a long way to re-establishing trust that has eroded over the years.”
Reilly, who appeared alongside Board of Regents President Michael Falbo and Vice President Regina Millner, said no regent had asked him to step down.
The search for a new president will begin in coming weeks with the goal of naming a successor in the spring, Falbo said. He said Reilly was a “strong, effective leader for the UW System.”
