Florida University System's Chancellor Adam Herbert Resigns

Tallahassee, Fla.
Dr. Adam W. Herbert, chancellor of Florida's public university system, resigned last month after a three-year term during which he helped advance Gov. Jeb Bush's plan to end the use of race in university admissions. The plan, known as the "One Florida" initiative, grants automatic admission to the top 20 percent of each high school class in Florida (see Black Issues, Jan. 18).
A committee appointed by the Florida Legislature recently approved plans to abolish the Board of Regents and replace it with local boards for each of the state's 10 public universities as well as another board that would oversee all education in the state. Under the reorganization, Herbert's job to oversee the universities would be eliminated.
Herbert said in his resignation letter, "It is now clear that we are going into a different stage in the life of the State University System. As I do each year, over the past month I have considered the question of whether my professional priorities and personal interests continue to make me an appropriate match for the tasks that lie ahead."
Herbert says he will return to the University of North Florida, where he was president from 1989 until becoming chancellor in January 1998.
"Chancellor Herbert has been an outstanding leader for the State University System and has served the state of Florida well," said Board of Regents Chairman Thomas F. Petway III. "He not only is an intellectual giant but also a man of honor and integrity. The entire Board and I are pleased he will remain within the SUS."
Herbert says he is anxious to once again serve as a campus mentor and role model for students from inner city schools who are making the transition into college.
"The opportunity to provide special support to students from these schools who have been designated as recipients of the Herbert Scholarship Fund will be particularly meaningful," Herbert says.
Petway said he anticipates the Board of Regents will craft a strategy on finding a replacement and take final action at its February 14-15 meeting at Florida Atlantic University.