By Olivia Krauth–
President James Ramsey’s chief of staff is denying reports of Ramsey potentially retiring.
Kathleen Smith told WFPL the rumors are “totally false” and the “source is flawed.”
WHAS-11’s Doug Profitt cited an anonymous source, who told him Ramsey had met with a small group of trustees to discuss potential retirement plans over the weekend.
Ramsey recently hinted at leaving the university in a faculty senate meeting. “I’m going to do the best that I can for as long as I can,” Ramsey said in the Feb. 3 meeting. “I’ll be blunt – I don’t know how much longer I will be here.”
Ramsey said he had made similar comments multiple times recently, many in public. When Ramsey spoke at the Rotary Club of Louisville in January, he said, “I’m 67 years old and I don’t know how much longer I’m going to have all this fun.”
“I’m 67 years old, my wife’s having some health issues,” Ramsey said after the faculty senate meeting. “I never expected to work this long, so I’m just playing this out.”
Ramsey has faced criticism in a recent stream of scandals involving U of L. His large salary and bonuses drew criticism over the summer, with his Halloween costume getting heat in the fall. His decision to self-impose a postseason ban on the men’s basketball team is currently in headlines.
