STORRS, Connecticut — The University of Connecticut’s interim president is stepping down from the role after six months for a new job in the private sector, the school announced Friday.
Dr. Andrew Agwunobi, who has led the university since July 2021 and UConn Health since 2014, will leave the university on Feb. 20 for a new role at Humana, a private-sector health care company.
The university’s Board of Trustees will meet on Jan. 26 and Radenka Maric, the vice president for research, innovation and entrepreneurship, is expected to be named interim president effective Feb. 1.
Bruce Liang, the dean of the UConn School of Medicine, is expected to be named interim CEO of UConn Health. Agwunobi will remain for a transition period.
Maric has served as Vice President for Research since 2017 and oversees the University’s $375 million research enterprise at the main campus in Storrs, the UConn Health campus in Farmington, the School of Law in Hartford, and four regional campuses around the state.
Liang has been Dean of the School of Medicine since 2015.
Agwunobi said he is "immensely grateful" for his time at UConn and UConn Health and knows that the university is in "good hands."
“It has been an honor to serve as CEO of UConn Health and as interim president of this amazing University,” says Agwunobi said in a statement. “I had no plans to leave UConn, but a unique and unexpected opportunity in the private sector presented itself and while I am excited about this new chapter, the decision to leave UConn was a difficult one.”
Agwunobi has simultaneously served as interim president of UConn and CEO of UConn Health since the resignation of former President Thomas Katsouleas in June 2021.
“I want to thank Dr. Agwunobi for his exemplary service to UConn and UConn Health over these last seven years, and I wish him all the best,” said Board Chair Daniel Toscano in a statement. “Dr. Andy is an executive of the highest caliber who has been both an outstanding leader and a great partner to the Board of Trustees and the UConn Health Board of Directors. While we are sad to see him go, Andy is pursuing a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to lead a ground-breaking effort to transform health care delivery as we know it.”
Toscano said a national search for president will begin immediately, with the goal of naming UConn’s next president by this fall.
Gov. Ned Lamont, in a statement, thanked Agwunobi for his service to UConn over the years and wished him well in this new opportunity.
"Dr. Agwunobi has helped to steer UConn and UConn Health through unprecedented times, all while overseeing significant growth in research and enrollment. UConn’s Medical School has grown under his leadership, and our flagship higher education institution has strengthened its reputation as a national leader," he said. "I have had the pleasure of spending time with Andy, and I will miss his thoughtful outlook and positive demeanor."
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