University of South Alabama President Tony Waldrop is retiring after seven years at the helm of the Mobile institution.
Waldrop plans to stay at least through the end of the school year, as trustees search for a new president.
“President Waldrop has accomplished so much during his time at USA that it is almost impossible to catalog his impact on the University,” said USA Board of Trustees Chair Jimmy Shumock. “His guiding principle is to put students first, and he has substantially enhanced academics, student life, athletics and facilities, and developed new programs and initiatives that have propelled USA to higher levels of teaching and research. At the same time, he’s overseen advancements and expansions to our healthcare system that make USA Health the premier provider in the region.”
During his tenure, the university has completed a $161 million fundraising campaign, admitted its best-ever freshman class, partnered with area community colleges, added an honors college and a global unit to work with international programs and added new facilities, including a football stadium. USA Health has expanded rapidly with a new patient care center, an updated trauma center, a new cancer clinic in Baldwin County and plans for a family medicine center in Baldwin.
“As a community, we have together made great strides forward on all fronts — academic, healthcare, research, and student life — and I’m grateful to have had the opportunity to continue the upward trajectory of this great University,” Waldrop said.
Waldrop and his wife, Julee, will relocated to North Carolina. She’ll be assistant dean of the school of nursing at Duke University. In that role, she will be responsible for the Doctor of Nursing program.
Waldrop, who came to South in 2014, earned his academic credentials at the University of North Carolina. At UNC, he won two NCAA championships as a mile runner and set a world record for the indoor mile.
