UAH President Robert Altenkirch says he is planning to retire either during or after the upcoming academic year.

Altenkirch said in a letter to campus faculty and students that he has asked the Board of Trustees to begin the selection process for his selection. Once the board has selected a new chancellor to replace C. Ray Hayes -- who is leaving this month for a new role in the University of Alabama system -- Altenkirch said his own successor will be chosen.

"It is an honor, a privilege, and a pleasure to serve as President of The University of Alabama in Huntsville, and I look forward to us continuing on our trajectory of progress this coming academic year," he said.

Altenkirch has been president of UAH since September 2011. Prior to that, he was president of the New Jersey Institute of Technology.

He has three mechanical engineering degrees: His bachelor's and doctorate from Purdue, and a masters degree from the University of California, Berkeley.