CARBONDALE, Ill. (AP) — Southern Illinois University has chosen the president of Winthrop University in South Carolina as its next leader.

The (Carbondale) Southern Illinoisan reports that SIU in a news release said the Board of Trustees is expected to confirm the appointment of Daniel F. Mahony as the next SIU president when it meets Thursday.

On Tuesday, Mahony said he was stepping down to become president of SIU and Winthrop University said Mahony’s last day will be on March 1.

Mahony was Winthrop’s president for nearly five years. Just recently, under his leadership, the university earned its highest ranking in a quarter century in the U.S. News & World Report’s “Best Colleges” compilation.

Before becoming Winthrop’s president, Mahony was a dean at Kent State University and a professor and administrator at Louisville University.