Chancellor Robert Jones Steps Down After Record-Breaking Tenure

Last week, the Board of Education gathered to talk about closing seven Acero charter schools and hiring external legal counsel. Meanwhile, the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign announced that Chancellor Robert Jones will retire at the end of the school year. Jones has served as chancellor for nine years and has had a significant impact on the university. He guided the school through the COVID-19 pandemic and helped it reach record enrollment levels.Under his leadership, the university developed a life-saving COVID-19 test and contributed to vaccine research. Jones is the first African American chancellor at Urbana-Champaign and has a background in plant physiology and administration. He plans to help with the search for the next chancellor. The university hopes to find someone who can build on the positive momentum created under Jones' leadership.