Sonny Perdue to Retire as Chancellor of the University System of Georgia

University System of Georgia (USG) Chancellor Sonny Perdue announced today he will retire, capping more than four decades in public service that began in Houston County and grew to include roles in the Georgia State Senate, two terms as governor and as U.S. Secretary of Agriculture.

The Board of Regents will launch a national search for the system’s next chancellor, and Perdue will continue to serve until a successor is named.

“Serving as chancellor has been one of the most impactful roles of my life, and stepping away is not a decision I make lightly,” Perdue said. “From Houston County to the governor’s office to Washington and back home again, my career has been guided by a simple belief: public service is a calling, and we’re meant to lift others and leave things better than we found them. I also want to thank my wife, Mary, whose love and support have steadied me through every chapter of this journey. Our children and grandchildren remind me every day why this work matters and why an affordable, high‑quality public education can open the door to prosperity for every Georgian.”

“As I prepare to retire, I’m grateful for our presidents, faculty and staff, our students and the many communities that make up this remarkable system,” Perdue added. “USG is a family, and I know it will continue to thrive, grow and serve Georgia.”

Perdue’s retirement caps a public service career across local, state and federal roles defined by fiscal stewardship, operational efficiency and a commitment to expanding educational opportunity for all Georgians.

It began in the 1980s with service on the Houston County Planning and Zoning Board and grew into one of the most wide‑ranging in Georgia’s modern political history. First elected to the Georgia Senate in 1991, he later chaired the Senate Higher Education Committee and served as Senate President Pro Tem, helping to shape landmark education initiatives, including the HOPE Scholarship.

In 2003, Perdue became the first Republican governor of Georgia since Reconstruction, winning two terms and leading the state through the twin recessions of the 2000s. His administration emphasized fiscal restraint, government efficiency and maintaining Georgia’s Triple‑A bond rating throughout his tenure. During these years, Georgia students posted the highest graduation rates and SAT scores in state history.

Perdue later served on the national stage as the 31^st U.S. Secretary of Agriculture, managing a workforce of 110,000 employees and steering the nation’s food and agriculture systems through the COVID-19 pandemic. His leadership included stabilizing the food supply chain and launching the Farmers to Families Food Box program to assist vulnerable Americans.

“Chancellor Perdue has given decades of service to our state and nation, and his time leading the University System of Georgia has solidified a legacy of impact that will continue for generations to come,” said Governor Brian Kemp. “His partnership in launching Georgia MATCH and the DREAMS Scholarship, restoring the HOPE Scholarship to full tuition coverage and removing costly fees on students has ensured higher education in Georgia remains accessible and affordable for hardworking families. Under his leadership, the system has seen record enrollment, modernized campuses and advanced medical education, including the launch of UGA’s new School of Medicine. Marty, the girls and I want to thank him for his years of history-making service and leadership, and on behalf of grateful Georgians everywhere, we wish him and Ms. Mary all the best in the years to come spent with loved ones.”

Perdue has served as USG’s 14^th chancellor since April 1, 2022, leading a system that now includes 25 public colleges and universities with a $12.1 billion annual budget, 54,000 faculty and staff and more than 382,000 students. Since stepping into the role, he has guided one of the nation’s largest and most affordable public higher education systems while keeping a sharp focus on expanding access and maintaining academic quality.

Under his leadership, USG’s enrollment in Fall 2025 surged to its third consecutive year of record‑high enrollment. An advocate for developing and recruiting strong leaders, Perdue has, over the course of his tenure, installed 14 presidents across the system’s 25 institutions.

USG strengthened student retention and graduation efforts, helping drive an all‑time high of 82,607 degrees awarded in FY2025 — an increase of more than 50% since 2011. At the same time, Georgia has consistently ranked among the most affordable states in the country for tuition and fees, currently ranking third-lowest among Southern Regional Education Board states and fifth-lowest nationwide.

“Chancellor Perdue has always centered students in every decision he’s made,” Board Chairman David B. Dove said. “His push to keep college affordable, expand access and modernize the system has opened doors for thousands of Georgians who might not otherwise have pursued higher education. By strengthening pathways from our campuses directly into Georgia’s workforce, he’s helped ensure students leave with the skills they need to succeed and build a strong talent pipeline for employers. His leadership has made a real and lasting difference for our students, our institutions and our state.”

An advocate for affordability, Perdue had just become USG’s chancellor when the system eliminated its longstanding Special Institutional Fee, saving students between $340 and $1,088 annually, depending on the institution. By December 2024, an independent audit by the state Department of Audits found that since 2017, tuition for USG students had declined by more than 24% after adjusting for inflation.

That commitment to affordability and access also shaped Perdue’s advocacy at the state level. Most recently, Perdue was a strong advocate for expanding college access through Georgia’s new DREAMS Scholarship, a landmark needs‑based aid program championed by Gov. Kemp and funded with $325 million in the just-concluded legislative session. The initiative will complement Georgia’s long‑standing merit‑based HOPE Scholarship by helping students with financial need stay enrolled and complete their degrees, strengthening the state’s workforce and expanding opportunity for Georgians statewide.

Perdue advanced efforts to strengthen Georgia’s health‑care workforce by expanding education and training across the university system. USG supported the growth of medical education through the Augusta University–Wellstar partnership and the expansion of the Medical College of Georgia’s Savannah campus, while working with the state to launch and expand new programs aligned with workforce needs. Those efforts have included UGA’s new School of Medicine and its upcoming School of Nursing. The system expanded dental education through the Dental College of Georgia and has planned for Georgia Southern University’s new College of Optometry to address a growing demand for healthcare professionals, particularly in rural and underserved communities. Together, these initiatives reflect a coordinated, systemwide approach to meeting Georgia’s most pressing health‑care needs and improving access to care statewide.

He advocated for the creation of the Commission for Public Higher Education, a first‑of‑its‑kind accrediting body established in 2025 by six public university systems across the South, including USG. Perdue supported the multi‑state effort as a way to keep Georgia’s public colleges and universities among the nation’s best by improving accountability, strengthening innovation and ensuring institutions have access to a transparent, outcomes‑based accreditation model grounded in real student data.

That same focus made an impact within the system. The Board of Regents approved the consolidation of East Georgia State College and Georgia Southern University, a major initiative Perdue recommended in 2025 to expand access and improve student success across southeast Georgia. The consolidation, effective at the start of the year, joined the strengths of both institutions to broaden degree pathways, enhance support services and create new opportunities for students in Emanuel County and the surrounding region.

In 2024, USG, under his guidance, mobilized a systemwide response to Hurricane Helene, with campuses stepping up to support one another as one “USG Family.” Institutions across the state provided housing, staging space, supplies and personnel to assist campuses hit hardest by the storm, while hosting displaced students and first responders.

Perdue led major modernization efforts to improve how USG works and how campuses access information. That included launching the systemwide Unified ERP project to replace aging tools with a single cloud‑based platform for core operations and expanding real‑time data and dashboard tools to support better planning, decision‑making and student‑success efforts.

It also included addressing long‑term student housing needs across the system. The system concluded its public‑private housing partnership with Corvias in January, returning student housing oversight to the nine institutions that had worked with the company. The move reinforced accountability and flexibility while continuing to focus on affordability, safety and the student experience and has allowed campuses to better align housing decisions with local needs and long‑term enrollment and retention goals.

Throughout his tenure, Perdue emphasized the connection between a strong, affordable and modernized university system and statewide economic competitiveness, positioning USG to support Georgia’s workforce and long-term growth better.

Born in Perry, Georgia, and raised on a farm in Bonaire, Perdue is a veterinarian and agribusiness owner who graduated from Warner Robins High School and earned his Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree from the University of Georgia. He is a veteran, having served 4 years in the U.S. Air Force. He is married to the former Mary Ruff, also a UGA graduate. They have four children, 14 grandchildren and 1 great-grandchild and have served as foster parents to children awaiting adoption.

The national search will be conducted by the board’s Executive and Compensation Committee with support from an executive search consultant. The search will be advised by Dr. Mark Becker, who served as president of Georgia State University from 2009 to 2021 and later led the Association of Public and Land‑grant Universities, and Dr. Stephen R. Portch, who served as USG chancellor from 1994 to 2001, to help guide the process and ensure a smooth transition.