Mitchelson named interim chancellor at ECU

Dr. Ron Mitchelson

Dr. Ron Mitchelson, provost and senior vice chancellor of academic affairs at East Carolina University, has been appointed as interim chancellor by UNC System President Bill Roper.

“I am pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Ron Mitchelson as interim chancellor at East Carolina University, effective immediately,” Roper said in a statement issued today. “As a longtime member of Pirate Nation, I know Ron will do a great job leading the university while the ECU search committee begins the vital work of identifying the university’s next chancellor.”

Mitchelson, who came to ECU in 1999 as a professor and chair of the Department of Geography, has served as provost since 2015. Before coming to Greenville, he held faculty and administrative positions at the University of Georgia and at Morehead State University in Kentucky.

“My 20 years at ECU have been, by far, the most rewarding years of my life,” he said. “The university has afforded me so many opportunities to grow as an educator and as a leader.

“I am humbled and privileged to lead this great university, and I appreciate the responsibility that President Roper has entrusted to me.”

As provost, Mitchelson serves as ECU’s chief academic officer with oversight of academic programming, enrollment management, institutional planning and research, and equity and diversity. As interim chancellor, he said he remains committed to the university mission of student success, public service and regional transformation.

“While we face some significant challenges, I am so excited about our recent successes and our expanding capacity to assist our students and the region,” he said. “Last year we set records for the number of students graduated, the value of external grants and contracts, and we were named as one of the very best universities in the entire country by the Princeton Review.”

Mitchelson has served as acting chancellor since Sept. 30 and will serve as interim chancellor until the UNC Board of Governors completes its search for the university’s next permanent chancellor.

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