Jeff Cooley’s retirement, effective Dec. 31, was announced on Tuesday. Cooley, the vice president for Business Affairs, will be concluding a 25-year career at Eastern to spend more time with his family.

“Jeff’s retirement will be a huge loss to Eastern’s administrative team,” said Eastern President Bill Perry. “His work has been absolutely critical to me in my first year at Eastern. His leadership and knowledge of fiscal matters, of the university and of state offices has been of great benefit to Eastern for many, many years.”

Cooley’s reputation for his vast knowledge in financial matters is widely respected.

“I don’t think there’s a better financial guru at a four-year school in this state,” said Rep. Chapin Rose, R- Mahomet. “I call Jeff all the time for questions about how situations would effect the school.”

Rose said Cooley’s abilities to reduce electric and water expenditures by utilizing energy efficient equipment campus-wide has surpassed all other state schools’ attempts.

“Eastern is the single most efficient school in Illinois,” Rose said. “Eastern educates more students per tax dollar than any other school and that’s all (credited) to Jeff. He’s made that school economically sound.”

Cooley was appointed vice president for Business Affairs in June 2001 by then president Carol Surles, following a national search.

Mark Hudson, director of Housing and Dining Services, said his interview to become director was on the exact day that Cooley was being interviewed for the vice president for Business Affairs job.

“In the time that I’ve been here, we’ve had very good relations with the finance departments, and Housing and Dinning is a big department that does a lot of buying and selling,” Hudson said.

Hudson said Cooley was very pro-student when attaining residence services such as cable. Cooley didn’t see the minor contracts, for everyday student uses, as any less important than the major commercial agreements, Hudson said.

Cooley’s career at Eastern began as a student. He graduated in 1979 with a bachelor’s degree in accounting. Immediately thereafter, he spent four years working as an accountant at a private firm in the Taylorville area.

He began his 25-year employment at Eastern in 1983 as the director of internal auditing until his promotion to assistant vice president in 1997.

According to Perry, a search advisory committee will be selected this summer and will begin its work in finding a new vice president for Business Affairs this fall.

Paul McCann, director of Business Services, said a decision to hire an interim has not yet been decided. He said the president’s office is still analyzing possible outcomes and different marketing processes. He said the applicant pool often dictates timelines and decisions to hire from within.

“Once I find out the president’s intensions then yes, I might consider (applying),” McCann said.

Rick Kambic can be reached at 581-7942 or at rwkambic@eiu.edu.