USG chief had good five-year run

Hank Huckaby has a combination of skill sets and experiences that made him an especially good choice for the University System of Georgia’s chancellor when he was named to that post in 2011.

His last job before being named CEO of the state’s system of public colleges and universities involved representing House District 113 in the Georgia General Assembly. He has also been commissioner of the state Department of Community Affairs and a member of the Governor’s Office of Planning and Budget.

But that’s just the government/political part of the resume. Hank Huckaby is also a veteran educator who has taught in both public and private institutions of higher education, and a trustee of Young Harris College. When the state desperately needed somebody who could bridge the often contentious realms of politics and academe during a post-recession funding squeeze, Huckaby was the man for the moment.

The moment will end with the current calendar year. University System officials announced Huckaby’s plan to retire effective Dec. 31, and named Steve Wrigley, executive vice chancellor of administration, to fill the role of interim chancellor while the Board of Regents searches for a full-time successor. (There was no immediate announcement on whether Wrigley would be a candidate.)

During Huckaby’s five years at the helm, University system institutions have shown some impressive improvements. Among the most impressive is the growing free textbook program which, as reported earlier, saved students in University System schools some $16.5 million in the most recent academic year alone.

Another, as reported in the Albany Herald, is a campus safety program begun last year that has overhauled safety training and procedures for every school in the system, and will have a campus safety committee in place at every USG college and university this year.

And the number of graduates from system schools has increased 14 percent since 2011.

As the roster of students has grown larger during Huckaby’s tenure, the number of institutions has gotten smaller — from 35 to 29, with the consolidation of some schools and the merging of redundant programs. The result, according to system officials, has been the saving of some $19.6 million in administrative expenses that can be put back into classrooms, research facilities and student services.

Huckaby was Georgia Trend magazine’s 2015 Georgian of the Year, and, it would seem, rightly so.

Board of Regents Chairman Kessel Stelling, CEO of Columbus-based Synovus, called Huckaby “a lifelong public servant to the state of Georgia … The Board and I express our sincere thanks and appreciation for all Hank has done to support the students, faculty, staff and everyone who will touch the University System for years to come.”

This story was originally published August 11, 2016 at 6:31 PM with the headline "USG chief had good five-year run."