Eight days after former Mayor Richard Daley left office, he already landed at least one new job.
Though the pay is not public, the University of Chicago has given Daley a five-year appointment as distinguished fellow.
Among his responsibilities, Daley will coordinate a guest lecture series for the Harris School of Public Policy Studies about major issues facing cities in the 21st Century. Daley's press secretary Jackie Heard says she and the former mayor will work together.
"We are welcoming a significant new voice," said U of C President Robert Zimmer.
Chicago Harris Dean Colm O’Muircheartaigh even hinted at an appointment extension, saying "we know he often continues in a term beyond the first."
Daley says the next phase of his life is "already quite exciting," and he already looks more relaxed. He says "life goes on" and "of course you miss the job."
Before Daley handed off Chicago's mayorship to Rahm Emanuel on May 16, he said he was considering writing a book centered around policy, with a touch of memoir mixed in, or teaching a government or leadership class.
Daley also reportedly signed on with a New York lecture agency to deliver speeches for an estimated $50,000 a pop.
Daley's U of C class begins in the fall.
