BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) - A week after he withdrew as a finalist for the job of interim chancellor of North Dakota's university system, Eddie Dunn says he has changed his mind.

Dunn is the university system's vice chancellor for strategic planning, and a former vice president of the Greater North Dakota Chamber of Commerce. He said Tuesday he has agreed to be a candidate for interim chancellor.

"We do have a lot of very successful things going on in higher education today, and a lot of momentum," Dunn said. "Other people thought, and I did too, that it was really important that we keep that going … I've been there all along during that process, and I have a solid understanding of what it is."

His decision means the Board of Higher Education will have someone to talk to Thursday when board members meet in Bismarck to interview candidates for the temporary position.

Last week, a search committee picked Dunn and Lee Vickers, president of Dickinson State University, as finalists for the job.

Afterward, Dunn stood down, saying he thought Vickers was a better candidate. Vickers then withdrew himself after the board voted to shorten the interim chancellor's term from a possible 24 months to 10 months.

The board is searching for someone to replace incumbent Chancellor Robert Potts, who is resigning because of management differences with some board members.

Potts was scheduled to leave his position Tuesday, but said he had agreed to stay in the job until Friday to give the board more time to find an interim successor.

Potts' severance agreement said he could continue as chancellor after his departure date, if he consented and the board wanted him to continue. Potts said Tuesday he had agreed to a request by the Board of Higher Education's president, John Q. Paulsen, that he remain until Friday.

Potts' agreement will pay him almost $200,000 during the next 11 months to serve as a consultant if he is asked to do so. It is meant as compensation for the final year of Potts' three-year employment contract. He has been chancellor since July 2004.

"We'll just take it a week at a time," Potts said Tuesday. "I would prefer to keep the extensions short, so that everybody understands it's a temporary situation. I want to try to help them out, to make a smooth transition, so I'm amenable to assisting if I'm needed."