TALLAHASSEE — Longtime St. Petersburg legislator Darryl Rouson is being hired by New College of Florida as its presidential scholar and professor of trial litigation, the school announced Tuesday.

Rouson will teach courses on trial advocacy and leadership in public life, the Sarasota college said, starting this fall.

“Senator Rouson’s distinguished career in the courtroom and the legislature will provide students with an extraordinary opportunity to learn from one of Florida’s most respected legal and public leaders,” New College President Richard Corcoran said in a statement.

Rouson is leaving office this year because of term limits after serving 18 years in the House and Senate. He was head of the St. Petersburg NAACP for five years before that.

“I’ve given the public 23 years,” he told the Times/Herald. “I think I’ve done some good work within my areas of passion, and I’m excited for the next chapter.”

Rouson, 70, said he was going to teach two classes each in the fall and spring semesters and an independent study in January. He said he was expecting about $100,000 in total for the work.

“We’re still working out the fine details,” he said.

Rouson, a former prosecutor and trial lawyer, said leaving the Legislature will allow him more time to practice. He said he joined the Tampa Bay injury law firm Emerson Straw this year. He also plans to finish a book about his addiction and recovery from drugs and alcohol this year, he said.

The New College job came together after he ran into Corcoran at an event at the school in November, Rouson said. Corcoran was a Republican House speaker when Rouson, a Democrat, was in the chamber. In 2017, Corcoran appointed him to the Florida Constitution Revision Commission.

With the new job, Rouson will not be seeking another run for his old House seat, which he was considering this year. Rep. Michele Rayner, a St. Petersburg Democrat, and House Minority Leader Fentrice Driskell of Tampa are running to replace him in the Senate. He said he had not decided who he would endorse.

“It’s still early, and each has their strengths,” he said. “I’m probably going to do something, but just not yet. I want to see how hard they work.”