National Security Council spokesman Michael Anton has decided to leave the White House, Politico reported on Sunday.
Anton, who was brought into the administration by President Donald Trump's first national security adviser Michael Flynn, said he will be joining Hillsdale College's Kirby Center as a writer and lecturer.
Anton said he "will be forever grateful to President Trump for the opportunity to serve my country and implement his agenda."
During the campaign, Anton became a controversial figure when he wrote an essay that made a highbrow version of Trump's attack on the Republican establishment, calling conservative intellectuals wilted and outmoded.
Anton's announcement of his department comes just two days after the last day on the job for former national security adviser H.R. McMaster, who is being replaced by John Bolton.
Trump called Anton on Sunday and thanked him for his service, expressing personal regard for him and saying that he would be missed, a senior White House official told The Hill.
White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders called Anton a true friend, telling Politico that "Michael is one of the smartest and most talented individuals I've ever worked with — not to mention an amazing chef."
During his time in the administration, Anton appeared frequently on television to defend the president's foreign policy stances, the Hill reported.
Anton said that "the education I received and the friends I made are – apart from my family and my country – the most cherished things in my life," adding that he is "delighted to be returning to my first love and second family," referring to Hillsdale College.