President John Hennessy will take a brief sabbatical for part of winter and most of spring quarters, he announced Monday at a department chairs meeting and in a letter he addressed to the University cabinet; the Stanford Report published his letter today.

Hennessy said he is scheduled to return to campus before graduation in June. During his time away, he plans to attend certain University events such as the dedication of the Stanford Center at Peking University.

Provost John Etchemendy will serve as Acting President in Hennessy’s absence.

“As you know, sabbaticals allow members of the faculty to temporarily leave their normal duties and pursue their scholarly interests full-time, so that they may return to their positions with renewed vigor, perspective and insight,” Hennessy wrote in the letter.

“This is my intention as I enter my 12th year of service as Stanford’s president and my 34th as a member of the faculty.”

Hennessy noted that Stanford’s, and all participating universities’ proposals for a New York City campus will be completed by the time his sabbatical begins.

“The timing coincides with the conclusion of our five-year Stanford Challenge campaign,” he said. “The proposal for a New York City campus will have been submitted and considered, and if we are successful, planning will be well under way.”

—Ellora Israni