Jere W. Morehead, current senior vice president for academic affairs and provost at UGA, has been named the finalist for the presidency of the university.
“I am honored and humbled to have been selected by the chancellor, the chairman and the board of regents as the finalist for president of the University of Georgia,” Morehead said. “I look forward to making further statements regarding this wonderful opportunity to continue serving the University of Georgia after the board completes its process in the coming days.”
If given final approval by the regents, Morehead will succeed UGA President Michael F. Adams, who steps down June 30.
“This is a great day for the University of Georgia,” said Adams. “The board of regents and the search committee could not have found anyone more committed to the future of this place than Jere Morehead.
“He is someone who has given the overwhelming majority of his life to the University of Georgia, and he will be a great and respected leader here for many years to come,” he also said. “I wish him well in every endeavor.”
Morehead, 56, is a native of Lakeland, Fla. He moved with his family to Atlanta as a teenager, where he completed high school early, and enrolled at Georgia State University at the age of 16. He graduated four years later in 1977. He entered the UGA School of Law, where he graduated at the age of 23 in 1980.
Morehead worked for the U.S. Department of Justice as a U.S. attorney from 1980-1986.
He joined the UGA faculty in 1986, serving as an assistant professor teaching legal studies in the Terry College of Business, rising through the ranks from associate to full professor. He also directed the UGA Law School Advocacy Program from 1986-1995.
After serving as a visiting professor at the University of Michigan in 1995, Morehead returned to the Terry College faculty in 1996.He joined the UGA administration in 1998, serving as vice president for instruction, vice provost for academic affairs, director of the Honors Program and acting executive director of legal affairs. He has been senior vice president for academic affairs and provost since 2010.
His tenured faculty appointment is as Meigs Professor of Legal Studies in the Terry College of Business.
As provost, the deans of the schools and colleges as well as the vice presidents for instruction, public service and outreach, research, student affairs and information technology report to him.
The regents will take final action on the selection of the next president of UGA at a future meeting.
