University College Dublin president Andrew Deeks has announced he will resign from his position in April 2022.
Prof Deeks revealed he will take up the role of vice-chancellor at Murdoch University in his hometown of Perth, Western Australia, after he leaves UCD.
Prof Deeks shared the news in a special bulletin to colleagues, adding that Professor Mark Rogers, deputy president and registrar, will become the acting president on his departure and will hold that role until the Governing Authority appoints his successor.
“I have greatly enjoyed my time at UCD, despite the various challenges Irish universities have faced over these eight years,” he said.
“I have been constantly impressed by the dedication and commitment of our faculty and staff, by the talent and achievement of our students, by the generous support we have received from alumni and philanthropists, and by the productive partnerships we have formed with companies and organisations.”
Prof Deeks said he and his family were made to feel “very welcome and at home here in Ireland”.
“However, my 10-year term as president is rapidly coming to an end, and the opportunity to return to my hometown to lead a university which is well-positioned to thrive in this time of disruption and opportunity, a time where the need to build a sustainable global society is increasingly recognised was one I could not pass up,” Prof Deeks added.
He said UCD is in a "strong position academically and financially, with exciting plans for the future, and has come through the trials of the pandemic in good shape”.
Prof Deeks said he regrets the fact he will not be there to see these plans come to fruition, however, he is "confident" they will.
Prof Deeks took up the role of president on January 1st, 2014. He was the first Australian in the role and first UCD president from outside of Ireland since John Henry Newman in 1854.
