Wilson To Be Interim Head Of Kennedy Institute

The outgoing president of the University of Massachusetts will serve as the temporary leader for the Edward M. Kennedy Institute for the United States Senate.

The institute announced Tuesday that it has named Jack Wilson as interim president and chief executive of the facility which is being constructed next to the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library in Boston.

Wilson's final day at UMass is June 30. He'll begin his new role the following day and will help in the selection of a permanent president for the institute.

The educational facility will include a replica of the Senate chamber where Kennedy served for 47 years until his death from brain cancer in 2009.

Organizers have raised $60 million in private donations and pledges for the institute, with $38 million more in federal funding.