Cal State Long Beach President Jane Close Conoley announced Monday she will retire at the end of the 2024-25 academic year.
Conoley, the first woman regularly appointed to lead CSULB, has been president of the university since July 15, 2014. She will step down effective June 30, 2025.
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"In the months to come, I anticipate making many expressions of thanks to this remarkable community," Conoley said in a statement. "Serving as your president has been the honor of my career and a beautiful capstone for a 49-year professional life I've devoted to education."
In a video message shared with the campus community, she said, "I am filled with gratitude. Through both our trials and triumphs, I've immensely enjoyed being part of this community, and I am so proud of all we've done together."
CSU Chancellor Mildred Garcia issued a statement praising Conoley's work for the university, calling her "an exceptionally skilled, highly principled and truly visionary leader -- a person of wisdom, thoughtfulness, empathy and compassion."
"Thanks in large part to her leadership, Cal State Long Beach has strengthened its position as a powerhouse of social mobility, a beacon of inclusive excellence and a true anchor institution for the region," Garcia said. "President Conoley has been innovative and intentional -- and highly successful -- in her work to create and sustain a more diverse and inclusive campus environment, as evidenced by the university being named a Center for Truth, Racial Healing and Transformation by the American Association of Colleges and Universities.
"She has expanded Cal State Long Beach's research impact while maintaining the university's laser focus on its students and their success. And the extraordinary success of the recent No Barriers capital campaign -- generating more than $313 million of philanthropic investment against a goal of $275 million -- clearly shows an institution that has the respect and enthusiastic support of its alumni, the extended campus community and the region it serves."
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