New chancellor named for Pa. state-owned universities

John Cavanaugh was chosen Monday to replace Judy Hample as chancellor of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education.

Cavanugh, 54, has been president of the University of West Florida since 2002.

Hample, who has been chancellor since August 2002, is leaving, effective in July, to become president of the University of Mary Washington in Virginia.

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The Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education, or PASSHE, oversees 14 state-owned universities. In the Pittsburgh area, they include California, Clarion, Indiana and Slippery Rock.

The state-owned system has a combined enrollment of more than 110,000 students.

In a statement, Cavanaugh said he was "extremely honored and privileged to be named chancellor of PASSHE, one of the premier systems of public higher education in the country."

Cavanaugh is the third chancellor in PASSHE's 25-year history.