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GREENSBORO — Chancellor Stanley Battle’s resignation from N.C. A&T came amid apparent tensions over his managerial style and opposition to his efforts to raise admission standards at the university, according to interviews Wednesday with faculty, staff, administrators and alumni.

But the leader of the school board of trustees said Battle left on his own accord.

“It was a shock to me and a shock to the board,” Franklin McCain said. “But when he gave his reasons as family and personal, we have to respect that.”

McCain said the board has not discussed replacing Battle.

Repeated efforts Wednesday to reach Battle, who will step down June 30, were unsuccessful.

But a source close to the administration said there was “no big thing” that forced him to step down.

“There’s just a bunch of little things,” the source said. “Sometimes you just get tired of dealing with it all. His mother died at Christmas, the things at work — sometimes you ask yourself, 'Is this what I want to do?’ ”

Battle’s mother, Rachel Battle, died Christmas Day in Springfield, Mass.

Whatever drove him to leave, Battle’s departure will bring renewed instability to a university that has experienced considerable turnover in the chancellor’s office.

Battle’s replacement will be A&T’s fourth leader since Edward Fort retired in 1999.

"Stability is extremely important and I hope the next chancellor is able to work with the culture and the politics in Greensboro and Chapel Hill," said Ralph Shelton, a former chairman of the A&T board. "I would almost rather not see us go the interim route, even if they have to talk Battle into staying longer, because I think that the students deserve stability more-so than having four different chancellors in a five year span (including the interim chancellor between Renick and Battle and Battle's successor in July). I think the students deserve better."

Battle has served as chancellor since July 2007, earning $273,156 a year.

In his short tenure, Battle pushed to raise A&T’s admissions standards by seeking students with higher grade point averages and higher SAT scores.

The SAT scores of incoming freshman have risen in each of the past two years, narrowing the gap between A&T and UNC’s systemwide average. The gap — and the high number of A&T students on academic probation when Battle arrived — had been a source of criticism in the past.

However, according to some interviewed Wednesday, the improvements put Battle at odds with those who believe A&T, as an historically black university, should accept and work to improve all students who want a college education.

Campus officials said the conflict started soon after Battle arrived. The board apparently gave Battle a list of mandates; accomplishing them, he told staff, would require raising standards.

Others on campus questioned Battle’s managerial style. Some described him as passionate and hands-on; others as a hard driving micro-manager who favored results over tradition.

None of the 20 faculty, staff, administrators, alumni, trustees and community leaders interviewed by the News & Record agreed to speak about these issues for attribution. Many sources on campus said they had been told by university officials not to speak with the media.

McCain, one of the four A&T students who started the 1960 Woolworth sit-ins in downtown Greensboro, wouldn’t comment on Battle’s performance.

“I wouldn’t want to characterize what he did,” McCain said. “If I did that, I’d be lynched.”

Like many others contacted Wednesday, UNC system President Erskine Bowles declined comment. His staff referred questions to the system’s public affairs office.

UNC would have nothing more detailed to say about Battle’s departure than the brief statement of praise and best wishes that Bowles had released Tuesday, said Joni Worthington, the 16-school system’s vice president for communications.

Battle had told Bowles in advance about his decision to step down, she said.

“But I do not know the content of those discussions,” Worthington said, adding that Battle’s departure is a personnel matter and subject to confidentiality rules.

Bowles will work closely with McCain to begin a search for Battle’s replacement, she said.

“The hope would be to have a new chancellor in place before the beginning of the next academic year,” Worthington said, adding that it’s “certainly our expectation” for Battle to remain on the job until June 30.

McCain said he wants to get the best possible candidates, but he doesn’t see why that can’t be done by August at the latest.

“If General Motors can find a new CEO in a few weeks,” McCain said, “I don’t see why we can’t find someone in a few months.”

Staff writers Taft Wireback and Nancy McLaughlin contributed to this report.

Contact Joe Killian at 373-7023 or joe.killian@news-record.com

Contact Don Patterson at 373-7027 or don.patterson@news-record.com