(The Center Square) — Pennsylvania higher ed will go through a leadership change in the fall as PASSHE Chancellor Dan Greenstein announced he will resign in October to “work nationally.”
Greenstein, serving as chancellor of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education since 2018, led the system through a consolidation that merged six campuses into two and looked to pivot the system after years of student enrollment declines.
“This has been one of the most challenging decisions of my career,” Greenstein wrote in an open letter. “For six years, I have poured my heart and soul into our system, its people, mission, and places. My passion for our work, students, and cause is unwavering. A significant amount of good, critical, and undoubtedly hard work is yet to be done for our students, their communities, and Pennsylvania.”
Greenstein said he would share more news in September about the national opportunity he’s taking.
The resignation comes a week after PASSHE announced it would freeze undergraduate tuition for the 7th year in a row. Freezing tuition while getting more money from the state, officials argued, would help the system pivot to refocus on high-demand fields in Pennsylvania without asking students to carry the financial burden.
Greenstein called freezing tuition “perhaps the single most important thing we’ve done.”
“Since he arrived, Dan has been singularly focused on redesigning PASSHE and positioning it for the future,” Cynthia Shapira, chair of the Board of Governors, said in a press release. “He is passionate about higher education, he is passionate about student success, and we are a better system today because of his leadership.”
Critics, however, have warned that recent changes haven’t gone far enough to reduce staffing costs. House Republicans have also argued that they want to be a partner addressing college affordability across the state, not an “ATM.”
Gov. Josh Shapiro also lauded Greenstein for his service and improving the system.
“He’s done an outstanding job,” Shapiro said during a press conference at Shippensburg University. “I’m really grateful to Dan for his leadership.”
House Education Minority Chairman Jesse Topper, R-Bedford, said Tuesday he was honored to work with Greenstein and acknowledged his efforts to ease pressure on PASSHE over the years.
“The challenges the system faced upon his arrival were numerous and he did not shy away from addressing any of them to the best of his ability,” he said. “There is no doubt in my mind that the students who attend these institutions are in a better position to succeed thanks to his tireless efforts.”
He went to praise Greenstein’s committment to student achievement, saying he believes the chanellor has “set a wonderful example for those in leadership roles in higher education.”