YOUNGSTOWN - Youngstown State University Board of Trustee's announced that current YSU interim president Dr. Helen Lafferty will be leaving the university this week.  

In her place, the board has named vice president for Finance and Business Operations Neal McNally as acting president until President-Elect Bill Johnson takes over as university president in 2024. 

According to a press release, Lafferty will leave the university Wednesday, December 27, to begin her transition back to teaching in her previous position at Villanova University for the upcoming semester starting in January. 

"On behalf of the Board of Trustees, we would like to thank Dr. Helen Lafferty for stepping forward to serve her alma mater as interim president. Throughout Dr. Lafferty's time at YSU, she worked daily advancing the mission of YSU as a student-centered University built on academic excellence," the release stated. 

McNally has been vice president since 2014, and he will serve as acting president until Johnson assumes president in March.