Bob Mong, the recently retired longtime editor of The Dallas Morning News, has been tapped as the next president of the University of North Texas at Dallas.

Mong was named sole finalist for the position Thursday at a special meeting of the University of North Texas System Board of Regents. The appointment won't become official until a 21-day state-mandated waiting period passes. Then, he'll oversee a campus with 2,600 students in an economically disadvantaged area of southern Dallas.

He takes the job after retiring from the Morning News in May. Mong, 66, ran the publication for 13 years, a time of drastic change and sharp cutbacks for the paper and the newspaper industry at large. He spent 36 years at the paper overall, during which the paper won nine Pulitzer Prizes. Mong's last three months at the paper were spent as editor emeritus after the appointment of Mike Wilson as the new top editor.

"I could not have imagined a more meaningful second career," Mong said in a press release. "An important part of the mission of the university to educate students in Southern Dallas County is very appealing to me, as is UNTD's abundant potential as a catalyst for economic growth in that region."

In announcing the hire, UNT System Chancellor Lee Jackson praised Mong as a skilled leader able to recruit top talent and develop a clear strategic plan.

"Bob Mong knows Dallas and the importance of education and economic development in Southern Dallas County," Jackson said. "He is a thought leader in the Dallas community, widely known and respected, and he has a strong record of recruiting talent throughout his career in journalism.”

Mong will replace current President Ronald T. Brown, who has accepted a job as associate vice chancellor of academic affairs at the UNT System.

Disclosure: The University of North Texas is a corporate sponsor of The Texas Tribune. A complete list of Tribune donors and sponsors can be viewed here.