After leading Murray State University for six years, president Bob Jackson will retire in June 2025.
The far Western Kentucky school announced Jackson’s impending retirement in a release Monday. Jackson – an alumnus of MSU along with his wife, Karen – has served as MSU’s acting president since 2018, and was permanently appointed to the post in 2019.
“Serving as President of my Alma Mater has been a lifetime honor and the capstone to my professional career,” said Jackson. “I am deeply grateful for this opportunity. But, everything and everyone has a season, and Karen and I are looking forward to spending more time with family and friends, traveling, and enjoying our next chapter of life.”
Jackson graduated from Murray State University with a bachelor’s degree in finance and has also completed graduate courses in finance at the school. He’s been associated with the university for more than 43 years.
Jackson spent much of his career in higher education and as a Democratic state Senator representing far Western Kentucky for nearly a decade.
He served the school in several capacities during his career, including as president of the Murray State University Foundation and the senior advisor to the university for state and federal governmental relations.
Under Jackson, the school has seen some of the largest freshman classes in its history and invested in campus infrastructure including renovations of historic university buildings like Lovett Auditorium and Wrather Hall and new additions to the campus like the esports arena and the still under construction School of Nursing and Health Professions building.
Jackson also led the school through the COVID-19 pandemic, oversaw the athletic transition to the Missouri Valley Conference and Missouri Valley Football Conference for the Racers and served as the leader on the occasion of its centennial anniversary.
“Dr. Jackson’s retirement marks the end of a historic period of leadership, change and innovation for Murray State University,” MSU board of regents chair Leon Owens said in a release. “Dr. Jackson has left a lasting mark and we are very grateful for his many years of service.”
The school also confirmed in the release that its board of regents will soon begin a search for Jackson’s successor. His retirement is effective June 30, 2025. After that, he is expected to continue his employment with the university as president emeritus, assist with the transition and serve as a special advisor to the board of regents.
Murray State regents hire firm to conduct search for next president
The Murray State University Board of Regents approved a contract Tuesday for the firm Academic Search Inc. to help find candidates for the college’s next president.
The university announced Monday that its current president, Bob Jackson, will be retiring at the end of June 2025. He’ll remain in an advisory role with Murray State through the end of October 2025, and will have the title of president emeritus.
The search firm will be paid at a rate equal to 30% of the next president’s first-year salary.
In a letter to the board, Jackson – a former Kentucky state Senator who’s been in the university office since 2018 – said serving his alma mater has been “the capstone” of his professional career.
Tuesday’s meeting can be streamed on YouTube.
This story is republished with permission from WKMS. Read the original.
A native of western Kentucky, Operle earned his bachelor's degree in integrated strategic communications from the University of Kentucky in 2014. Operle spent five years working for Paxton Media/The Paducah Sun as a reporter and editor. In addition to his work in the news industry, Operle is a passionate movie lover and concertgoer.
