Murray City Councilman Jay Morgan announced at last week at the council meeting he would resign at the end of the month to focus on his new job as provost and vice president for academic affairs at Murray State.

Morgan said he would resign from the council effective June 30, the day before the start of his new position as provost on July 1. He said he thought it would be more professional to step down now and make way for someone else to fill his seat, and that he hoped waiting until the end of June would allow time for the council to appoint a person to finish his term.

“After being named provost, and in looking at my schedule for the next 6 months, I saw quickly that I was going to miss a large number of the regular council meetings. After weighing it some I felt like the best, and most professional thing to do was to resign and let someone else take the seat,” Morgan said.

Morgan’s fourth term on the council will end Dec. 31, 2014. Morgan served two terms several years ago before running again in 2010 and returning to the council. He was re-elected in 2012.

“The trips to Frankfort on MSU business need to take priority for me, so transitioning off the council will assist in that,” Morgan said.

It was also recently announced that Morgan will also be re-appointed to the Frankfort-based Board of Trustees of the Kentucky Teachers Retirement System, the Commonwealth’s largest pension system. KTRS oversees $15 billion dollars in pension funds. Morgan previously served as vice chairman of the board and will return for another term effective July 1.

“I enjoyed working with, and for, the citizens of Murray, and weighed the decision for a month or more before finally deciding,” Morgan said.

Story by Meghann Anderson, News Editor.