University System of Georgia (USG) Chancellor Hank Huckaby has named Dr. Gretchen B. Caughman as interim president at Georgia Regents University (GRU).

Caughman currently serves as executive vice president for academic affairs and provost at GRU. She was appointed to vice president and provost Jan. 2013. Prior to the consolidation of Augusta State University and Georgia Health Sciences University, she was appointed interim provost of the Medical College of Georgia in Sept. 2010 and became executive vice president for academic affairs and provost of Georgia Health Sciences University in June 2011. She is also a professor in the College of Dental Medicine, the Medical College of Georgia (Medicine) and the Graduate School at GRU.

She will begin her new assignment on July 1, following the departure of President Ricardo Azziz.

“I’m very pleased to name Dr. Caughman as interim president of GRU,” said Chancellor Hank Huckaby. “She has a wealth of experience and a deep commitment to the success of Georgia Regents. Her appointment will allow for a successful transition as GRU prepares for the next phase of its success as Georgia’s premiere health sciences institution.”

During her tenure as provost at GRU, the Office of Diversity and Inclusion was established, the Division of Institutional Effectiveness was created, the Institute of Public and Preventive Health and GRU Leadership Academy were launched, and the newly formed Georgia Regents University was accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges. She recently launched the GRU Cyber Institute and currently serves as chair of the University System of Georgia system-wide Cybersecurity Initiative Consortium.

Caughman has had a long career serving higher education in Augusta, Ga. She began her career at the Medical College of Georgia (now a part of GRU) in 1985 as an assistant professor of oral biology with appointments as assistant professor in the Schools of Dentistry and Graduate Studies in 1988.

She has also had appointments as associate professor in cellular biology and anatomy in the School of Medicine, associate dean of the School of Graduate Studies, associate dean of graduate studies in the School of Medicine and dean of the School of Graduate Studies.

Caughman received her undergraduate degree in biochemistry from Clemson University (South Carolina) and her Ph.D. in basic and clinical immunology and microbiology from the Medical University of South Carolina (Charleston). She completed a three-year National Cancer Institute Individual Postdoctoral Fellowship in herpesvirology at the University of Mississippi (Jackson).

Board of Regents Chair Neil Pruitt and University System of Georgia Chancellor Hank Huckaby have also announced a sole finalist for the Georgia Regents University (GRU) presidency, Dr. Brooks Keel.

Keel is currently the president of Georgia Southern University (GSU) in Statesboro. He began as the 12th president of GSU in January 2010.

“It’s an honor to be considered for the role of President of Georgia Regents University,” said Keel. “I love the Eagle Nation and am proud of all we’ve accomplished together. If fortunate to be selected by the Board of Regents, this would be a unique opportunity to return to both of my alma maters that now comprise GRU.”

Georgia Southern is a regional university in the University System of Georgia that educates more than 20,000 undergraduate and graduate students at the university’s eight colleges.

Prior to joining Georgia Southern, Keel served as vice chancellor for research and economic development and professor of biological sciences at Louisiana State University (Baton Rouge).

As president of Georgia Southern, Keel has focused on expanding undergraduate and graduate education through research and community experience. He has also worked to raise the national profile of Georgia Southern academically and athletically.

Under his leadership, GSU has launched the Allen E. Paulson College of Engineering and Information Technology and the Institute for Interdisciplinary STEM Education. GSU also manages the Herty Advances Materials Development Center, which was transferred to the institution by the state of Georgia.

At Georgia Southern, he also serves on the board of directors of the Georgia Southern University Research and Service Foundation, board of trustees of the Georgia Southern University Foundation and board of directors of the Georgia Southern University Housing Foundation.

Civically, Keel serves as the chair of the board of directors of the American Board of Bioanalysis. Some of the other boards he serves on include the Scientific Advisory Board of the AAB Proficiency Testing Program, the Georgia Chamber of Commerce and the board of trustees of the East Georgia Regional Medical Center.

Among other academic appointments, he has served as associate vice president for research, vice president of the research foundation and professor of biomedical sciences at Florida State University (Tallahassee).

Keel received a Bachelor of Science in biology/chemistry from Augusta College (now Georgia Regents University), a doctorate in reproductive endocrinology from the Medical College of Georgia (now Georgia Regents University) and completed post-doctoral work at the University of Texas Health Science Center (Houston) and University of South Dakota School of Medicine (Vermillion).

The Board of Regents will take action on the selection of the next president of GRU at a specially called board meeting at 11 a.m. on Wednesday, July 8, 2015.