Sen. Gary Peters is heading to Los Angeles for a post at the University of Southern California after his term ends early next year, the university said Monday.
The retiring Michigan Democrat will be an endowed chair in practical politics and co-lead USC’s Center for the Political Future with longtime Republican strategist Mike Murphy. The university said Peters will teach courses at its Los Angeles and Washington campuses.
“I look at this as a capstone of my years in public service at the local, state and federal level,” Peters said in a statement. “It’s never been more important to bring people together, and there’s no better place to start than working with students and getting them engaged in civic activism.”
Peters, who was first elected to the Senate in 2014, announced his plan to not seek reelection in January 2025. Before his time in government, Peters taught classes in business and finance at several Michigan universities.
He said the opportunity to work with young people and engage them in politics, policy and civics drew him back to higher education.
“Gary Peters brings an extraordinary combination of public service, bipartisan leadership and real experience getting things done in Washington,” said James Bullock, dean of USC’s Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences, in a statement. “He has spent his career showing that you can hold strong political convictions and still work productively with people who see the world differently.”
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