According to the Associated Press as reported on WBUR.org – Robert Manning – Chairman of the University of Massachusetts Board of Trustees resigned his position today.

The chairman of the University of Massachusetts board of trustees has resigned after Gov. Deval Patrick weighed in on the search for a new system president. UMass spokesman Robert Connolly confirmed that Chairman Robert Manning resigned Wednesday. He promised a followup news release explaining the move.

Manning is a UMass-Lowell graduate who now runs one of the Boston’s biggest mutual fund firms, MFS Investment Management.

He and trustee James Karam have been overseeing the supposedly independent process to replace President Jack Wilson.

The Boston Globe reported that UMass-Lowell Chancellor Martin Meehan was emerging as a favorite, but Patrick weighed in, saying he wanted someone with national heft and an academic background.
The governor’s aides also requested a woman and black candidate be added to the group of semi-finalists.

Stay tuned for more on this resignation. Stay tuned for more fall-out as the search continues for a new president for the UMass system.

Link to story: http://www.wbur.org/2010/12/08/umass-chairman-quits