Margaret Spellings Will Step Down in March as U. of North Carolina President

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Margaret Spellings will resign as president of the University of North Carolina system on March 1, marking her three-year anniversary as leader of the 17-campus system, its Board of Governors announced on Friday.

Spelling had a five-year contract, but will leave two years early.

Many observers, including a board member, have speculated that she is departing in part because of the charged political climate on the system’s campuses, including conflict over the controversial Silent Sam statue on the Chapel Hill campus, and a turbulent relationship with the board.

“All leaders are for a time,” Spellings said following Friday’s announcement. “I came into this position knowing that the most lasting contribution I could make was to help create a culture of higher expectations for the citizens of this state — and we have done just that.”

Spellings, who served as secretary of education under President George W. Bush, oversaw major efforts to increase affordability and accountability on the UNC campuses, but also became entangled in several culture-war controversies, such as the Confederate statue at Chapel Hill.

The confirmation of her departure followed a two-hour closed meeting by the Board of Governors, which said it was “working to identify an interim president” and expected to announce “details on the appointment in the coming weeks.” The board said nothing about what it might look for in a permanent successor.

The terms of Spellings’s resignation include a $500,000 payment as well as regular salary and benefits until March 1. Spellings may join an outside board at the start of 2019.

Follow Cailin Crowe on Twitter at @cailincrowe, or email her at cailin.crowe@chronicle.com.