Thorp will succeed James Moeser, who is stepping down after eight years as UNC Chapel Hill's leader. He called Moeser his mentor, and Moeser praised Thorp's success.
CHAPEL HILL -- The dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at UNC-Chapel Hill is the university's new chancellor. Holden Thorp, a 43-year-old Fayetteville native, takes office July 1 as the university's 10th chancellor. The UNC system Board of Governors made the announcement Thursday.
"I think I'm on record saying this is the best job in American higher education, and it is a great honor to be chosen," Thorp told board members Thursday after they announced his election.
Thorp's own history of honors is intertwined with UNC-CH. He earned his undergraduate degree in chemistry from the school in 1986, then returned in 1993 to teach. He became chair of the school's chemistry department, and last year was appointed dean of the College of Arts and Sciences.
"It's overwhelming to be able to come back and lead my own university in my own state," Thorp said. "And I think there's always something extra that I'm going to get from that that would be absolutely invaluable to me as time goes on."
Thorp will succeed James Moeser, who is stepping down after eight years as UNC Chapel Hill's leader. He called Moeser his mentor, and Moeser praised Thorp's success.
"He has had a meteoric rise in my time at Carolina," Moeser said. "I thought years ago that he would be a great chancellor, and I'm not surprised and I think he would be a great chancellor."
Thorp's priority list is already long.
"We have so much work ahead of us," Thorp said. "Our to-do list is nothing less than the greatest problems of our time: Cure diseases, and get those cures to all the people who need them. Find and invent clean energy. Inspire students in our public schools."
The dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at UNC-Chapel Hill is the university's new chancellor.
Some students have their own suggestions for him.
Shasta Smith, a sophomore, said she hoped Thorp would continue to make UNC-CH affordable for all students.
"That's what draws a lot of students to the university - reasonable prices," Smith said, adding that she wants the new chancellor to "keep the university going in the same direction."
"[I want him to] keep the university going in the right direction as far as growth and keeping our facilities up to date, which they've been doing a really good job with," she said.
Lexi Wolfe, a senior, agreed.
"I would want him to focus on maintaining the status of being a thought leader in areas such as the Carolina Covenant, and research at the university," she said, adding that she also hoped Thorp would continue the outgoing chancellor's commitment to affordable college tuition. Moeser helped spearhead the "Carolina Covenant" program, which allows qualified students from low-income families to graduate from college debt free.
"The Carolina Covenant really brought me here to UNC because I wasn't going to be able to come to school without some financial aid," Wolfe said. "That enabled me to come to the journalism school and be able to thrive without financial concerns holding me back. And I think that Chancellor Moeser was really the key to giving me that opportunity and getting that program running."
Thorp said he's up to the challenge of carrying UNC-CH forward, and described the university as "the light on the hill."
"Let it shine, let it shine, let it shine!" he said.