Florida Chancellor Frank Brogan has been named to a similar position in Pennsylvania, signaling an end to his four-year tenure as head of the State University System. The Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education tapped Brogan for the position on Wednesday.
His departure leaves the top two education posts in the state empty.
Education Commissioner Tony Bennett abruptly resigned last week after reports that he had tweaked Indiana's grading system to benefit a political contributor when Bennett was an elected official there.
In a conference call with reporters, Brogan said Florida would easily fill both jobs.
"We're going to have national attention, and I think we're going to have some blue-chip applications for the position", Brogan said.
A former education commissioner and president of Florida Atlantic University, Brogan steered the Florida system through a one-time budget cut of $300 million in the fiscal year that ended June 30.
He also oversaw the end of the Board of Governors' lawsuit against the Legislature over the power to set tuition.
The 17-member board has also been under pressure from Governor Rick Scott, who has now appointed or re-appointed most of its members, to keep tuition rates down. But Brogan said there was no friction between himself and Scott or the board.