Reilly was chancellor of UW-Extension, prior to the Board of Regents appointment on July 29, 2004, as the sixth president of the UW System.
[2] He will be teaching higher education and Irish studies at University of Wisconsin–Madison.
His responsibilities included leading programs in continuing education, Cooperative Extension, distance education, small business development, Wisconsin Public Radio, and Wisconsin Public Television.
A native of New York City, Reilly came to Wisconsin from the State University of New York System, where he was Associate Provost for Academic Programs and then Secretary of the University.
and Ph.D in English (with a focus on Irish literature and culture) at the University of Minnesota.