University of Wisconsin Provost Karl Scholz was named president of the University of Oregon Monday, according to UW News. Scholz will take office at the University of Oregon July 1.
The University of Oregon Board of Trustees unanimously selected Scholz after a six-month-long search led by a 22-member search committee, according to the University of Oregon.
Scholz will be the 19th president of the University of Oregon, replacing Michael Schill. Schill left Oregon to become president of Northwestern University after former UW Chancellor Rebecca Blank was diagnosed with cancer.
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Scholz has been the provost at UW since August 2019. As provost, he was the chief academic officer of the university, in charge of managing academic and outreach at UW.
Scholz, who served as interim chancellor during the summer of 2022 before current UW Chancellor Jennifer Mnookin assumed the position in August, was a finalist in the search to replace Blank after she announced her departure from UW, according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Before becoming provost, Scholz served as dean of the College of Letters & Science for six years. As dean, Scholz launched SuccessWorks, a center that connects students in the College of Letters & Science with alumni, advisors and mentors that work with students to navigate the professional world.
Scholz has also served in two presidential administrations — first, as a senior staff economist at the Council of Economic Advisors from 1990-91, then as deputy assistant secretary for tax analysis at the U.S. Treasury Department from 1997-98, according to UW News.
In a tweet, Mnookin congratulated Scholz.
“I personally will very much miss his thoughtful counsel and warm presence — but I’m also so pleased both for him and for the Ducks!” Mnookin said in the tweet.
The search for a new provost had already started, as Scholz announced in November he would return to faculty ranks. Finalists’ visits planned after spring break, according to UW News.
