Last Friday, Feb. 12 the President of the UNC System, Erskine Bowles, announced to the Board of Governors that he will retire from his position after four years.

According to News 14 Carolina, Bowles, who is a Greensboro native and who turns 65 in August, just left as if the timing was right for him to step down. Bowles said that being the UNC System president has been “the greatest privilege of my political career.”

In 1993 Bowles was hired by President Clinton to serve as the director of Small Business Administration. After that term he was chosen as White House Chief of Staff from 1994-95 and again from 1996-98.

“Erskine Bowles’ service to North Carolina and to our university system is a tremendous gift to our citizens as well as to our campuses,” said Governor Bev Perdue, the first woman to hold the office of governor in NC. “His talents, boldness, skill set, and determination have helped redefine how higher education works in this state.”   

Bowles ran for U.S. Senator in 2002 and 2005. Previously serving as the vice chair of Carolinas Medical Center in Charlotte and a trustee of the Duke Endowment, he currently serves on the boards of Morgan Stanley and Cousins Properties.

“His capacity to collaborate has strengthened all levels of education, Pre-K through 20, so that we truly have a seamless system that will help our students compete in this global economy.

Although Erskine is retiring from the university later this year, he will remain actively involved in public service in North Carolina and America,” said Perdue.

As president, Bowles oversees all 17 institutions in the UNC System. The University of North Carolina was the first public institution in the U.S.

The Board of Governors will seek to plan a search committee for Bowles successor in the upcoming weeks. He said he plans to leave by the end of 2010, although it is contingent upon the board finding a replacement.

• Jasmine Johnson