Just days after the start of a new academic year, the University of Alaska Southeast has announced another new beginning as it undertakes its search for a new campus chancellor.<\/p>\n
[Fall semester starts at the University of Alaska Southeast]<\/a><\/ins><\/p>\n The Juneau-based university’s current chancellor, Karen Carey, announced in May she will be retiring from her position at UAS and is set to bid farewell to her position at the end of the academic year in June 2023 — which means the search<\/a> has begun to fill her shoes after what she said was an unexpected time filling the role.<\/p>\n Originally starting as provost for the university, Carey said she was a part of the 2020 process of finding a new chancellor for UAS after the previous chancellor, Rick Caulfield, retired but did not have intentions to fill the position.<\/p>\n She said she planned to be a helping hand to the chosen candidate before she planned to retire, but that changed when former UA President Jim Johnsen announced his plan to consolidate UAS with University of Alaska Fairbanks which led to the chancellor search being called off.<\/p>\n But, soon after Johnsen announced his retirement, his replacement, current UA President Pat Pitney, called off his consolidation plan, which in turn meant the UAS would need a chancellor after all.<\/p>\n “It was very very weird — it was complicated,” Carey said in an interview. “Shortly after Pat became president, she asked me if I’d serve as chancellor,” she said. “So I was interim chancellor, then appointed permanent chancellor in November ‘20.”<\/p>\n Carey, who is 70, said she’s retiring now because of age and said “getting a fresh person in there is just the right thing to do at this time.” She’s going to miss “everything” about being chancellor at UAS and is excited to use her free time traveling once her retirement begins next summer. But, she won’t be too far away as she said she intends to stay in Juneau after falling in love with the city during her time working at UAS.<\/p>\n