The University of Texas at Arlington’s interim president for nearly two years was appointed the next leader of the New Jersey Institute of Technology.
Teik C. Lim became interim president at UT-Arlington after officials suspended a search for a new school leader due to COVID-19 in May 2020. He previously served as administrator in charge after former President Vistasp Karbhari stepped down.
“UT Arlington is a better institution because of Teik,” James B. Milliken, University of Texas System Chancellor, said in a statement. He and the regents “are profoundly grateful for his leadership and wish him all our best in his new post.”
Karbhari, who announced his resignation in March 2020, stepped down after details of an investigation into dealings with a university vendor were released.
During his time at UT-Arlington, Lim had previously served as provost and chief academic officer and was a mechanical and aerospace engineering professor. While he was interim president, UT-Arlington achieved the Texas Tier One designation, a prestigious state research designation that unlocks millions in research dollars for the university.
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Lim recently was also one of three presidential finalists at the University of Memphis, but he withdrew from the search pool in November.
The search for the UT-Arlington position restarted in July after university officials felt that the campus was in a more stable position than when the pandemic started and threw higher education into a whirlwind.
In November, the committee tasked with searching for the next president interviewed candidates and made recommendations to the Board of Regents.
The board will conduct interviews for the position on Friday during a special called meeting and may vote to name a finalist or finalists.
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