STORRS, Conn. — Thomas Katsouleas the provost and executive vice president of the University of Virginia, has been named the 16th president of the University of Connecticut.

Katsouleas was approved by a unanimous voice vote at a meeting of the school’s trustees on Tuesday.

He replaces Susan Herbst, the first woman to hold the position. She is stepping down on July 1 after leading the state’s flagship school since 2011, but will remain on the faculty.

The 60-year-old Katsouleas, an electrical engineer and plasma scientist, has served as provost at Virginia since 2015.

Katsouleas oversees Virginia’s 11 schools, library, art museums, public service activities, numerous university centers and foreign study programs. Prior to that he was the dean of Duke University’s engineering school. He has a PhD in physics from UCLA.

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