For Immediate Release

December 5, 2022

What follows is a statement from United University Professions President Frederick E. Kowal regarding the selection of former U.S. Secretary of Education John B. King Jr. as the next SUNY chancellor. UUP is the nation’s largest higher education union, representing more than 37,000 employees at SUNY and its public teaching hospitals.

“We welcome Dr. John King as SUNY’s new chancellor, and we look forward to working with him to strengthen the SUNY system and keep SUNY as the premier public higher education system in the nation.

“UUP shares Dr. King’s commitment to equity and excellence for all students and making a college education affordable and accessible. These are attributes we believe SUNY’s new chancellor must have to be effective.

“We are hopeful that Dr. King, a Brooklyn native, will be a strong advocate for SUNY, especially when it comes to securing more state funding for our public higher education system and our public teaching hospitals.

“A fully funded SUNY system will support the working conditions that UUP-represented employees deserve and guarantee that our students and patients will receive the rigorous education, high-quality academic services, and excellent health care that they are entitled to. He will have an equally strong ally in UUP in making that happen.

“UUP also thanks Deborah Stanley, SUNY’s interim chancellor, for her service during the search for a new chancellor.”