Georgia Southern University president plans to step down, interim president named

STATESBORO — Georgia Southern University President Jaimie Hebert announced Wednesday he will step down effective June 30, to pursue other opportunities, the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia said.

Hebert, the university’s 13th president, has served in the role since July 1, 2016. He helped to lead the consolidation of Armstrong State University and Georgia Southern that was finalized in December.

“Dr. Hebert is a lifelong champion of higher education and contributed significantly to the creation of the new Georgia Southern University,” USG Chancellor Steve Wrigley said. “I thank Jaimie for his dedication and service and commend him for his staunch commitment to serving students and supporting faculty. On behalf of the University System, we wish him the very best.”

The Georgia Southern campus newspaper, The George-Anne, reported in April that Hebert was a finalist to become the senior vice president for academic affairs and provost at the University of Houston-Clear Lake, and a candidate for provost for the University of Louisiana at Lafayette.

In preparation for the transition, Wrigley has named Shelley Clark Nickel as Georgia Southern’s interim president. Nickel currently serves as USG executive vice chancellor for strategy and fiscal affairs and treasurer for the Board of Regents. Nickel’s 17-year career with USG also includes service as interim president at Gordon State College in Barnesville.

In Nickel’s current role, she oversees strategic leadership for the University System’s 26 institutions, focusing on fiscal affairs, information technology and research and policy analysis. Among other initiatives, she has led a systemwide consolidation effort reducing the number of USG institutions from 35 to 26 and reallocating savings to the classroom.

“Shelley’s extraordinary talents have lent themselves to almost every facet of the system, and she is well-suited to lead Georgia Southern during this important transitional period,” Wrigley said. “She is a proven leader and will be a strong advocate for the institution, its faculty and students. Shelley’s incredible commitment to student success is a hallmark of her career, and she will serve the students of Georgia Southern well.”

Nickel’s career includes experience in state government, including more than 11 years in roles such as director of Georgia’s Office of Planning and Budget and president of the Georgia Student Finance Commission which is responsible for administering the state’s scholarship, grant and loan programs — including the HOPE Scholarship.

Nickel, a native of Pennsylvania, earned a master’s degree in public administration and a bachelor of science degree in community development, both from Penn State University. She is a life member of the Penn State Alumni Association and served on the College of Liberal Arts Alumni Society Board.

The University System will conduct a national search for Georgia Southern’s next president. A campus-based presidential search committee will be formed and announced. Members of the committee will include representatives from Georgia Southern faculty, staff, the student body, alumni and the community — and will be appointed by Wrigley and Board of Regents Chairman James M. Hull.

Nominations for the search committee should be submitted to the Board of Regents. The campus-based presidential search committee will be responsible for the search and screening of candidates, while a Regents special committee will also be formed comprising Board of Regents members.

At the conclusion of its work, the campus-based committee will forward the credentials of three to five unranked candidates to the Regents’ special committee for consideration. The Board of Regents has sole authority to appoint the next president.

Jennifer Parks