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A farewell to President Wilson KMJspot
Program and reception will take place on campus on June 15

By Mark Shelton
UMass Medical School Communications 		June 13, 2011 

Kennedy_Mello
President Jack L. Wilson, PhD, right, met with U.S. Sen. Edward Kennedy and Craig C. Mello, PhD, in Washington DC, after Dr. Mello won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 2006. 

A program and reception acknowledging the leadership and achievements of University of Massachusetts President Jack M. Wilson, PhD, will be held on Wednesday, June 15, following the 3 p.m. “topping off” ceremony for the Albert Sherman Center on the campus green. The program for President Wilson will take place in the Faculty Conference Room on the UMMS campus in Worcester, followed by a reception.

Dr. Wilson, who has led the five-campus University of Massachusetts since Sept. 2, 2003, announced in 2010 that he would conclude his presidency when his current term ends on June 30. He will be succeeded by Robert L. Caret, PhD, the president of Towson University in Maryland, on July 1.

Earlier this month, University officials announced the establishment of a scholarship that will bear President Wilson's name to support students with an interest in public service. The Jack M. Wilson Presidential Scholarship Fund will commemorate Wilson's strong record of accomplishment and create scholarship opportunities for students who demonstrate academic excellence and a commitment to public service.

"It has been an honor and privilege to serve as a steward of this University. It has been a joy to work on behalf of the students, faculty and staff of the University through the good times and through the challenges,” said Wilson.

During his tenure as president, he emphasized access and affordability for students, focused on research and innovation, and championed a capital program aimed at providing new facilities and much-needed renovations on all five campuses.

“Every world class university has a world class leader,” said Chancellor Michael F. Collins. “For the University of Massachusetts, that leader has been Jack Wilson.”

"It has been my great honor to lead this University, which means so much to the residents of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and to generations of our graduates,” said Wilson.