President led implementation of merger, hailed as ‘transformative’ leader

After eight years leading The University of Toledo and another three as head of the former Medical University of Ohio, Dr. Lloyd Jacobs announced today that he will step aside as UT’s president effective June 30, 2015.

“My time in Toledo has been among the most personally rewarding years of my life, and Ola and I are looking forward to many more at UT and in the community,” Jacobs said. “I’m excited by a new opportunity to help UT and other universities adapt to the financial and resource pressures that will grow only more challenging over time.”

Joseph Zerbey, chair of the UT Board of Trustees, said Jacobs has defined what transformative leadership truly is.

“Lloyd Jacobs not only led the way to make the merger with MUO a reality, he has led the implementation of the vision behind the merger and in a very literal way transformed this institution into one that is far greater than the sum of the two organizations that came together in 2006 to comprise the new University of Toledo,” Zerbey said.

Zerbey indicated that Jacobs will lead a new Institute of University Transformation. While still an initial vision that will be fleshed out over time, Zerbey said the institute would help integrate the ways technology can be used to improve the learning and retention of skills and information, increase access, and reduce costs for students.

“I have spoken often about the danger of higher education pricing itself out of the market. This is why I’ve been committed to ensuring UT has been a leader in slowing the pace of tuition increases,” Jacobs said. “UT plays a critical role in this community, and it is essential that The University of Toledo keeps pace with the rate of societal transformation taking place all around us.”

“This University and this community owes Dr. Jacobs a debt of gratitude for his success in raising UT’s national profile,” Zerbey said, adding that UT areas like the Interprofessional Immersive Simulation Center and the Ruth M. Hillebrand Clinical Skills Center are examples of pieces with a natural fit into the future Institute of University Transformation.

According to Zerbey, a national presidential search is planned and a formal search process will be announced soon.

Biography

Lloyd A. Jacobs, M.D., became the 16th president of The University of Toledo in July 2006 when he was selected to lead the merged institution created by the union of the former Medical University of Ohio and UT.

Jacobs has been a champion for increased access to higher education with UT taking a leadership role freezing tuition in 2007 and 2008, and again in 2013 for undergraduate students.

During his tenure, the University has invested more than $200 million in capital improvements, mainly by renovating existing academic buildings, classrooms and athletic venues. And the University celebrated the successful completion of its largest capital fund campaign in history that raised more than $106 million. A new $200 million campaign is already a quarter of the way to its goal.

Jacobs was named the sixth president of the Medical College of Ohio — later renamed Medical University of Ohio — in November 2003. Prior to coming to Toledo, he was chief operating officer of the University of Michigan Health System, one of the largest systems in the country, and senior associate dean for clinical affairs at the University of Michigan Medical School. He also held a faculty appointment as professor of surgery.

A native of Holland, Mich., Jacobs is a U.S. Marine Corps veteran. He earned a bachelor’s degree from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, and an M.D. degree from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore. A vascular surgeon, he completed surgery residency training at Johns Hopkins Hospital, the University of California at San Diego Hospital and Wayne State University in Detroit.

Media Coverage
The Independent Collegian (March 21, 2014)
The Blade (March 21, 2014)
The Blade (March 22, 2014)
The Blade (March 24, 2014)
The Blade (March 30, 2014)