Board of Regents names Robert Clayton Robbins as University of Arizona presidential finalist

He will be on campus on Wednesday

The Arizona Board of Regents has narrowed their search for the next University of Arizona president down to one person.

On Tuesday, they announced that current Texas Medical Center president and CEO Robert Clayton Robbins is the finalist to be the school’s 22nd president.

“Dr. Robbins’ comprehensive experience as both a visionary leader and highly-respected physician, as well as his evident talent for advancing research, innovation, entrepreneurship and economic development will serve the University of Arizona and our state well,” said ABOR President Eileen Klein. “I look forward to the possibility of collaborating with Dr. Robbins to advance the University of Arizona and achieve aggressive goals for the state of Arizona. His passion for students and higher education is genuine and I truly value his sincere openness, collegiality and integrity.”

Robbins has been with Texas Medical Center since 2012, and according to his bio, his education includes:

• B.S. in chemistry from Millsaps College (1979)
• Medical degree from the University of Mississippi (1983)
• General surgical training at the University of Mississippi (1989)
• Cardiothoracic training at Stanford University (1992)
• Post-doctoral research at Columbia University and the National Institutes of Health
• Congenital heart surgical fellowships at Emory University and Royal Children’s Hospital

Robbins was chosen as the finalist over Dr. Sethuraman "Panch" Panchanathan, who is the executive vice president and chief research and innovation officer of ASU's Knowledge Enterprise Development.

Current UA president Ann Weaver Hart’s contract expires in June of 2018, and she has previously said she will remain in her position throughout the duration of that contract.

On Wednesday, Robbins will be on the UA campus to participate in a community forum commencing at 4:15 p.m. at the ENR2 Building Auditorium. You can stream that here.

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