Dean of UNC-Chapel Hill journalism school to step down

King announced her decision in a letter to Hussman faculty on Tuesday.

"I want the transition to be as smooth as possible, although I realize the pandemic and accreditation may challenge the idea of 'smooth,'” she said. "A search will be launched this week, and I will remain in place until a successor is named."

King's decision comes weeks after the school made national headlines for its failed recruitment of Nikole Hannah-Jones, who won the Pulitzer Prize for her work on the New York Times' 1619 Project about the legacy of slavery on America.

King didn't mention the scandal in her press release. Instead, she cited her previous goal to move on from the position after 10 years.

"Since I first arrived at UNC, I have maintained that I did not plan on staying as dean longer than a decade," she said. "Media – journalism, public relations and advertising – are in a state of great change. It is not the same world or business even as it was in 2012 when I arrived. I believe after 10 years a new dean will bring fresh eyes, additional perspective and new energy to our school."

Chancellor Kevin Guskiewicz and Provost Robert Blouin praised King's accomplishments, including "well-funded collaborations across campus and key partnerships with industry and peers."

"Her emphasis on creating experiential learning opportunities for students, increasing faculty support and upgrading facilities to reflect media innovation are among the reasons media and journalism is now the university’s second-largest major," Guskiewicz and Blouin said in a statement.

King said she would take a leave of absence after her successor is named before returning to a faculty position.