Dan Gerlach, who resigned as interim ECU leader, lands new job with Raleigh lobbying firm
Dan Gerlach, whose time as interim chancellor at East Carolina University was cut short by a scandal, has a new job.
Gerlach is stepping out of higher education to work on economic development projects with former state Sen. Tom Apodaca’s Raleigh-based lobbying firm Vista Strategies, Gerlach announced on Twitter on Thursday.
“It’s an honor to work with Sen. Apodaca,” Gerlach tweeted with a link to the news from Business North Carolina. “His commitment to excellent public policy to foster a climate for a growing and prosperous NC is strong and unwavering.”
Gerlach also retweeted news from Business North Carolina that he has formed an LLC for his economic development projects with Apodaca and other clients.
Gerlach resigned from his position as ECU’s interim chancellor in October, after video footage showed he went out drinking at popular student bars near the Greenville campus on Sept. 25 and then later drove off in a car.
The UNC System originally placed Gerlach on administrative leave while an outside law firm, Womble Bond Dickinson, investigated what happened.
Gerlach initially defended his actions, saying that he was trying to connect with ECU students and be seen as approachable. He admitted it wasn’t good judgment, but he said he didn’t think it would put him out of the running for the full-time chancellor position.
‘The responsibility is mine’
About a month later, Gerlach resigned before the investigation was complete and took full responsibility for his behavior.
“Make no mistake: the responsibility is mine,” Dan Gerlach said in a statement.
“It is not the press, not the University or system leadership, and not anyone else who put me in this situation,” he said. “It was I who made the choices that led to this action. There is no one to hold accountable for the situation except me.”
Gerlach was making a $350,000 annual salary as interim chancellor but did not have an employment contract and was not given a severance package after his resignation, according to the UNC System.
Before ECU, Gerlach was the president of the Golden LEAF Foundation, a nonprofit focused on increasing economic opportunity in North Carolina’s rural and tobacco-dependent communities. He also previously had served as a budget and financial adviser to former Gov. Mike Easley.
This story was originally published January 23, 2020 at 5:03 PM.
