Winthrop University President Dan Mahony will leave the Rock Hill, South Carolina, school March 1 to become president of the Southern Illinois University System, Winthrop officials announced Tuesday.
Winthrop's board will look for an outside candidate to serve as interim president, then look at the university’s future needs, board chair Glenn McCall said in an email to faculty and staff.
"The news is bittersweet for us but what a wonderful opportunity for Dan to advance his career by taking on this new challenge of leading more than 28,000 students and managing an $867 million budget," McCall's message said.
Mahony has been president of Winthrop, a public university just across the South Carolina state line from Charlotte, since July 2015. The Southern Illinois University system encompasses several campuses, community centers and medical clinics.
