Bobbitt chosen as UA System president



story info submitted by the University of Arkansas system

Dr. Donald R. Bobbitt was chosen as the next president of the University of Arkansas System tonight in a unanimous vote of the University of Arkansas Board of Trustees.

“We believe Dr. Bobbitt has the vision, leadership skills, management style and academic background to lead our university system into the future,” said Dr. Carl Johnson, chairman of the board of trustees. “We had four outstanding candidates who brought great ideas and talents to the table, but we felt that Dr. Bobbitt had the right combination of skills and experience we were looking for.”

Bobbitt will replace Dr. B. Alan Sugg who served as UA System president for the past 21 years. Dr. Bobbitt plans to transition to the position by January 1, 2012 or sooner.

“I am deeply honored by the faith the board has shown in me and I’m absolutely thrilled by this opportunity,” Bobbitt said. “The University of Arkansas System means a great deal to my family and I view this as a career defining moment. I look forward to working with each of our institutions to create a system that will continue to serve Arkansas into the future.”

Bobbitt has served as provost and vice president for academic affairs at the University of Texas at Arlington since 2008. Previously, he served five years as dean of the J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville.

While at the UA, he was a professor in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry from 1993 to 2008 and director of the UA Arkansas Biosciences Institute from 2001 to 2008. He served as chair of the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry from 1998 to 2000 and earned the University of Arkansas Alumni Award for Teaching and Research in 1991.

He earned a B.S. in chemistry from the University of Arkansas in 1980 and a Ph.D. in Analytical Chemistry from Iowa State University in 1985.

The UA System includes:
University of Arkansas, Fayetteville
University of Arkansas at Little Rock
University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff
University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
University of Arkansas at Monticello
University of Arkansas at Fort Smith
University of Arkansas Community College at Batesville
University of Arkansas Community College at Hope
University of Arkansas Community College at Morrilton
Cossatot Community College of the University of Arkansas
Phillips Community College of the University of Arkansas
Arkansas School for Mathematics, Sciences, and the Arts
University of Arkansas Clinton School of Public Service
Division of Agriculture
Criminal Justice Institute
Arkansas Archeological Survey
Winthrop Rockefeller Institute