UCLA announced Gary Segura would step down from his position as dean of the Luskin School of Public Affairs in a message sent to the Luskin School’s staff and faculty Thursday.

Segura, who has served as dean since January 2017, made the decision to leave his position after six years to work as faculty, according to a release by the Luskin School. He will continue to serve as dean through the end of the year. Plans for interim leadership in his place are not yet available, according to the release. Prior to serving as dean, Segura was a professor of political science and the Morris M. Doyle Centennial Professor of Public Policy at Stanford University.

In a message to staff and faculty, executive vice chancellor and provost Darnell Hunt said Segura, who is also co-founder of the UCLA Latino Policy and Politics Institute, has remained committed to academic excellence and research, as well as to equity, diversity and inclusion. In 2018, Segura also spearheaded the development of the public affairs undergraduate major, and in 2021, he oversaw the introduction of the Luskin School’s certificate program in data analytics, Hunt said in the message.

“Chancellor Block and I are grateful to Dean Segura for advancing the public affairs disciplines at UCLA and for his work to deepen the Luskin School’s impact on communities near and far,” Hunt said in the message. “Please join me in thanking Dean Segura for his leadership and wishing him well on his next chapter.”