Securities and Exchange Commissioner Cynthia Glassman announced that she plans to leave the SEC after her current five-year term ends on June 5. But Glassman, who joined the commission in January 20, did not set a specific date for her departure.

SEC officials pointed out that commissioners typically remain for up to 18 months beyond a term’s completion if they aren’t replaced. “My term as SEC Commissioner has been the most exciting and fulfilling position of my 35-year career,” she stated in her resignation letter to President Bush.

Along with Paul Atkins and SEC Chairman Christopher Cox, Glassman is one of three Republicans serving on the five-member commission. The SEC credited her with championing investor education, enhancing disclosure, and increasing the use of economic analysis in SEC rulemaking. The commission also lauded Glassman for her initiative that led to the establishment of an $85 million investor education fund from the 2003 global settlement of research analyst conflict-of-interest charges involving the nation’s largest investment banks.

Glassman’s support of financial literacy has contributed to the issue’s recent high profile, which includes an upcoming hearing sponsored by the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee slated for May 23.

“Commissioner Glassman has been a stalwart proponent of investor protection, investor education, and clear disclosure,” Cox stated. “Her perspective as an economist has been invaluable to me, ensuring that the agency’s decisions are always based on a thorough examination of the economic consequences to investors and markets.”

Glassman served as acting chairman of the commission during the summer of 2005 before Cox officially took over for former chairman William Donaldson. Before being appointed commissioner, she served 12 years at the Federal Reserve and spent 15 years in consulting positions in the private sector.