UH President David Lassner to retire at end of 2024

University of Hawaii President David Lassner announced today that after serving for more than 10 years, he will retire from the position “at the end of 2024,” and said the decision is “both personal and professional.”

In a letter sent today to the UH Board of Regents, Lassner said the lead time will allow for a search for and transition to a successor. He did not give a date, but a UH spokesperson said Lassner meant the end of the calendar year 2024.

“The last president to serve (survive) this long was Gregg M. Sinclair, from 1942-1955. In 1955 UH was a single campus with an enrollment of 5180,” Lassner wrote.

“The job of UH president today is often described as the hardest job in the state. Constitutionally, the UH president reports to and is accountable to the Board. But we all know that faculty, students, staff, community members and legislators are also important stakeholders with strong views. It is an intense job, one I approach every day with energy and enthusiasm to pursue continuous improvement. But I am ready to planfully pass the torch to the next leader while I am able, active and healthy.”

Lassner, 69, who has worked for UH since 1977, said several years ago he advised then-board Chair Randy Moore of his intention to leave the position of president at age 70, but “neither of us believed it would be useful to make that public.”

Lassner said he has no contract term. “I have always been clear that when either the BOR or I decide it is time for me to step down, I want that to happen without acrimony, drama or lawyers,” he wrote. “I have seen what difficult separations do to the institution I care for so deeply and do not want to be the cause of that.”