Frohnmayer to retire as president of University of Oregon in Summer 2009

EUGENE, Ore. -- (April 29, 2008) -- University of Oregon President Dave Frohnmayer announced his intention to retire at the end of the 2008-09 academic year in a letter submitted earlier today to Oregon University System Chancellor George Pernsteiner and Oregon Gov. Ted Kulongoski.

Frohnmayer was appointed president of the University of Oregon, the state's flagship institution and a member of the Association of American Universities, on July 1, 1994. He is one of the longest serving presidents in the University of Oregon's 132-year history.

"Dave Frohnmayer is the senior statesman for higher education in Oregon," said Chancellor George Pernsteiner. "He has guided the University of Oregon with extraordinary skill and a calm hand through difficult financial times to create a university that is even stronger today, especially in its international profile, than it was when he became president 14 years ago. Through vision, foresight and sound planning, Dave has helped make the University of Oregon a world-class research and teaching institution. He leaves a remarkable legacy."

Pernsteiner said he would begin the search process for a new president immediately and that he expects to have a candidate selected prior to Frohnmayer stepping down in the summer of 2009. "By giving the State Board of Higher Education more than a year's notice of his intention to retire, President Frohnmayer has helped ensure that we will be able to recruit the finest possible candidates for the position," Pernsteiner said.

Frohnmayer addressed his letter to both Pernsteiner and Kulongoski. The governor praised Frohnmayer for his strong commitment of service to the state.

"Dave Frohnmayer is not only a great leader, he is a great Oregonian. Dave has served the citizens of the state in a variety of capacities throughout his long and illustrious career, and as president of the UO has helped pave a financial path to expand educational opportunities for more Oregonians," Kulongoski said. "I am grateful for Dave's service to our beloved state and the University of Oregon."

Frohnmayer formerly served as a law professor and legal counsel to the president of the University of Oregon, as a member of the Oregon House of Representatives, Oregon's attorney general, and dean of the University of Oregon School of Law. As attorney general, he argued and won six of seven cases before the U.S. Supreme Court, the most cases and best record of any contemporary state attorney general.

Frohnmayer has been a strong advocate for higher education outside the state's borders as well, according to Graham Spanier, president of Penn State University and chair of the Association of American Universities (AAU). "Dave Frohnmayer is one of the outstanding leaders in American higher education. He is greatly admired by university presidents across the country and beyond," Spanier said. "Dave has always been a strong, intelligent and rational voice and his leadership will be sorely missed."

Frohnmayer has held leadership roles on a number of national and international higher education bodies. He was a founding member of the Association of Pacific Rim Universities. He served on the executive committee of the AAU and the Internet2 board of trustees. He served on a variety of NCAA committees and also chaired the Bowl Championship Series Presidential Oversight Committee. In Oregon he has been a member of the Oregon Progress Board, the Public Commission on the Legislature and the Ford Family Foundation board of directors.

Frohnmayer is the first native Oregonian to serve as president of any large research university in the state. He and his wife, Lynn, are founders of the Fanconi Anemia Research Fund Inc. He is a founding director of the National Marrow Donor Program, a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and a magna cum laude graduate from Harvard University. He studied at Oxford University as a Rhodes Scholar and received his law degree from the University of California, Berkeley.

In his letter to the chancellor and the governor, Frohnmayer described his decision as part of an orderly transition plan and stated his intentions for his final year as president of the University of Oregon. "The past 14 years have seen great strides; much, however, remains to be done," he said.

Frohnmayer wrote that he looks forward to working on the university's academic excellence planning efforts; working with the State Board of Higher Education to explore improvements in the university system's governance and funding structure; and completing Campaign Oregon, the largest and most successful fund-raising campaign in the state's history. Campaign Oregon is set to close at the end of 2008.

Frohnmayer stated in his letter that he intends to remain at the University of Oregon and return to the teaching faculty following his retirement as president.

About the University of Oregon
The University of Oregon is a world-class teaching and research institution and Oregon's flagship public university. The UO is a member of the Association of American Universities (AAU), an organization made up of 62 of the leading public and private research institutions in the United States and Canada. Membership in the AAU is by invitation only. The University of Oregon is one of only two AAU members in the Pacific Northwest.

Contact: Julie Brown, director of media relations, 541-346-3185, julbrown@uoregon.edu

Links: Letter to the chancellor and governor, http://tinyurl.com/424bfc; list of accomplishments, http://tinyurl.com/5gpplk; photo, http://tinyurl.com/6nq2vo

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