"I guess part of the reason is that this campus has had challenges over the last couple of years, but we're out of it now, and I want there to be a clear process," Pritchett said in an interview.
Pritchett, 49, who was raised in Philadelphia and lives in University City, will take a one-year sabbatical starting in July, followed by a return to his faculty positions in Rutgers' history department and law school.
He announced the move at an annual breakfast for faculty, staff, and student leaders. An e-mail was then sent to the rest of the campus, followed by a university-wide e-mail from Rutgers University president Robert L. Barchi.
The university "will launch a national search for his successor, with the goal of appointing a new chancellor in time for the 2014-15 academic year," according to Barchi's e-mail.
Pritchett said he timed his departure to come after he led the campus through struggles that included not only the proposed Rowan merger but funding battles within the university system and in Trenton.
"We can have a considered transition. We can talk about what they're looking for in the next person . . . and then there will be time to actually recruit that person," Pritchett said.
Many in the Rutgers-Camden community describe the campus as embattled: often overlooked, always underfunded, and never given the respect it's due.
"I think it's quite understandable that the last two years may be viewed as dog years; in regular human years, there's a lot that went on in the last 18 months," said Rayman Solomon, the dean of the law school. "And it's a little like successful tag-team wrestling - you've got to know when it's time to bring the other guy into the ring and take a rest. And I think Wendell's saying it's time for somebody else to do that for a while."
Pritchett, the university's first black chancellor, assumed the role in July 2009, hired by then-university president Richard L. McCormick from among three finalists. The university has a chancellor in each of its regional campuses, in Camden, New Brunswick, and Newark, along with a fourth covering the new Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences division.
The chancellors hold direct responsibility for their campus' daily operations, reporting to Barchi.
That role was thrust into the spotlight last year, when state lawmakers proposed merging Rutgers-Camden with Rowan under Gov. Christie's wide-ranging reorganization plans for the state's colleges and universities.
Rutgers-Camden students, alumni, and faculty fought the move, and "Keep Rutgers in South Jersey" signs sprouted throughout the region. The university's board of trustees opposed the move, threatening legal action to block it.
Pritchett emerged as an advocate for strengthening the autonomy of Rutgers-Camden, raising his profile in the community as the face of the campus.
The proposed merger was dropped in the face of fierce opposition. The final plan includes their working together on a joint college of health sciences in Camden.
"Both in public meetings and in behind-the-scenes negotiations, Wendell successfully advocated against proposals for ending or in any way compromising Rutgers-Camden's essential place within Rutgers University," Barchi said in his e-mail. "His leadership was critical to ensuring that Rutgers will continue to have a statewide presence."
Contact Jonathan Lai at 856-779-3220, jlai@phillynews.com, or on Twitter @elaijuh.
