University President Andrew Sorensen announced Dec. 14, 2007, that he will retire as president July 31, 2008.

In a letter to Herbert Adams, chair of the University's Board of Trustees, Sorensen acknowledged that the University had made significant progress during his tenure but said the demands of a future potential capital campaign lasting seven years would require the leadership of a single chief executive officer.

"Our University requires a president who can see that campaign through from start to finish," Sorensen said. "Although Donna and I have immensely enjoyed our service to the Gamecock family, after considerable discussion, we have come to the inescapable conclusion that it is time to pass the baton of the presidency."

Sorensen became president on July 1, 2002, succeeding John M. Palms during a state budget crisis that required him to cut University spending dramatically.

To maximize resources, he immediately prioritized the establishment of partnerships with the private sector, as well as with the state's two other research universities. Within his first year, he announced plans for a research campus, now known as Innovista, that would transform the landscape of the city and the Midlands economy.

Under his leadership, the University increased its private giving, research funding, and quality of the student body, gaining the attention of the Wall Street Journal, which in November 2006 cited the University as an up-and-coming institution for the caliber of its academic offerings.

Under Sorensen's leadership, the University built the Inn at USC, established a Student Success Center, established a statewide bridge program with the state's technical colleges, integrated the University's College of Pharmacy with the pharmacy college at the Medical University of South Carolina, and became a founding partner in Health Sciences South Carolina.

Sorensen said he looks forward to serving the University for many years.

"I look forward to returning to the faculty upon stepping aside as president and renewing a life of scholarship and teaching."

A search committee to launch a national search is being formed.

To read Sorensen's statement at a press conference announcing his retirement from the presidency, go to uscnews.sc.edu/ADMN338a-07.html. To read his letter to the Board of Trustees, go to uscnews.sc.edu/images/sorensenletter.jpg.

12/07