After about 11 years of leadership, Robert Jerry will step down next year as dean of the UF Levin College of Law.
Jerry became the law school’s 15th dean in 2003, and on Aug. 9 he announced that he would be resigning June 30.
“This job is the best job I’ve ever had,” he said. “Taking this job was the best decision I could have ever made.”
After spending more than a decade as dean, Jerry said now is the right time to step down.
“These jobs are very rewarding and enjoyable, but there is also a time when you know in your bones and in your heart that it’s time,” he said.
Jerry said he would remain on faculty at the college and looks forward to getting back to teaching insurance law full time as well as continuing research program activities and exploring future publication opportunities.
“I want to continue what I’ve been doing before by helping students achieve their classroom goals,” he said.
Under Jerry’s leadership, the law school has seen a transformation with major renovations both physical and educational.
During Jerry’s tenure, the law library and classrooms have seen new additions and an independent legal advocacy center was constructed with a new courtroom.
Jerry’s reputation among law students is a positive one, said Marie Banks, a 27-year-old UF third-year law student.
“He is probably one of the most approachable deans I’ve ever met,” Banks said. “He would always make an effort to come out to events, and I always feel like he has been very involved.”
When he steps down, Jerry will be tied for the second-longest serving law dean since the Levin College of Law was founded in 1909.
During his tenure, the amount of donations has also increased, exceeding $830,000 in each of the last three years, according to a UF news release.
A search for a new dean is underway, Jerry said, and a decision will most likely be made by Spring.
Jerry said he is taking some words to heart that his 90-year-old father, a former administrator, once told him: “When it’s time to give it up, you will know it.”
A version of this story ran on page 4 on 8/28/2013 under the headline "UF law dean to step down, stay on faculty"
