University of Connecticut President Radenka Maric announced significant administrative changes Wednesday as the institution contends with a departure in its senior ranks.
The reshuffling comes as Provost Anne D’Alleva leaves to become president of Binghamton University.
D’Alleva was selected as the next president of the public university — part of the State University of New York (SUNY) system — by a vote of the SUNY Board of Trustees on Aug. 19. She will begin in her new role on Nov. 1.
Meantime, UConn’s Vice President for Research Pamir Alpay will step in to serve as interim provost.
The provost is UConn’s chief academic officer and oversees its 14 schools and colleges, as well as its four regional campuses.
Other key personnel will shift to new roles.
Michelle Williams, Maric’s chief of staff, will return to a role she held previously — associate vice president of the Office of the Vice President for Research — to focus on coordinating efforts with the Provost’s Office.
Williams previously served as a faculty member in the Department of Psychological Sciences, head of the clinical psychology program and associate dean. She was the associate vice president and executive director of the Office of the Vice President for Research until she was appointed chief of staff in 2022.
Williams will assume her new role on Oct. 3, Maric announced in a message to faculty and staff.
Following Williams’ move from the president’s office, Phil Hunt, who has served as deputy chief of staff since July 2024, will become Maric’s chief of staff.
Before joining UConn, Hunt served in senior positions, including university registrar and special assistant to the president of North Dakota State University, registrar of the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology, and director of access and diversity/FOIA compliance officer at George Mason University.
UConn plans to announce the appointment of an interim vice president for research as Alpay transitions to his new role as interim provost in early October.
D’Alleva became UConn’s provost on Dec. 1, 2022. She was the first woman in history to serve in that role and was previously dean of the university’s School of Fine Arts.
