Southern Methodist University's longest-serving president R. Gerald Turner will step down after three decades with the school.
Turner announced the decision in a video message posted to social media Wednesday afternoon.
"I think we will all agree that it's best to transition out of the presidency when momentum is high, as it now is at SMU," he said.
Turner will leave his position following the 2024-25 academic year. He said a search committee has been looking for a new president who will be named by the end of the spring semester.
He became SMU's tenth president in 1995. In his video message, Turner said he and his family were "thrilled" to move to Dallas and join SMU, two communities which felt like the perfect match for them.
A message from President R. Gerald Turner to the SMU Community:
— SMU (@SMU) August 21, 2024
"It is with an incredible sense of gratitude to the SMU community, I am announcing today that the coming academic year, 2024-2025, will be my last to serve as the 10th President of Southern Methodist University… pic.twitter.com/0ZX9anMYm4
Turner said he said he had an "incredible sense of gratitude" to both the university and the city.
Despite his plans to step down, Turner said he still intends to be helpful to the board and future president by working as president emeritus.
"There's still much work to be done on the goals and objectives of the strategic plan," he said. "Therefore the vice presidents and I would hope that this year will be, as much as possible, business as usual. There will be a time for reflections toward the end of the academic year."
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