Dr. Paul Keys, dean of the college of health and human services at Southeast Missouri State University, has resigned from the board of directors of Southeast Missouri Weed and Seed Inc.

Keys' resignation took effect at the last meeting in April. The board hopes to have another member added soon.

Cape Girardeau Police Chief Rick Hetzel has been selected as interim president for the five-community regional board. He had served as vice president.

Representatives from Cape Girardeau, Sikeston, Caruthersville, Charleston and Poplar Bluff serve on the regional board.

In other cities Operation Weed and Seed targets a single community. The regional effort is the first of its kind in the nation.

Keys said he resigned to have more time for other projects at the university and in the community."I'm not able to find the time to continue," he said.

Keys serves on the board of the Community Counseling Center and the Family Resource Center, as well as working with the university's Bootheel Initiative program and tourism projects.

Keys has been president of the Weed and Seed board since 1995 and worked to get program started locally. Cape Girardeau was the last of the five communities to join the regional program.

The university initially helped with research needed for the grant funding and recognition, Keys said. Weed and Seed is a crime-prevention program run through the U.S. Department of Justice that "weeds" out crime and "seeds" other resources and prevention programs.

"We're beginning to fund programs in all areas," he said. The regional board received $750,000 in grants this year for the five communities to share. The money will be spent on both "weeding" and "seeding efforts" in the target communities.

The board also is looking for a regional director to fill a vacancy left by the resignation of Calvin Bird. A candidate search is under way.