Robert Glauber, chairman and CEO of the U.S. National Association of Securities Dealers, will retire from his post on Aug. 31 as Mary Schapiro, the NASD’s vice chairwoman and president of its Regulatory Policy and Oversight Division takes over.

At the NASD board of governors meeting July 20, Glauber, who has served as chairman and CEO for almost six years, announced his intention to advance the date of his expected retirement from the end of this year to Aug. 31. He will return to Harvard as a visiting professor in its law school. Glauber had been a professor at the Harvard Business School and a lecturer at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government before becoming the NASD’s CEO in 2000 and its chairman in 2001.

“I came to NASD six years ago with the goal of transitioning the organization away from owning markets, and focusing it solely on its regulatory mission,” Glauber said. “With NASD’s recent sale of its last remaining stake in NASDAQ and with the SEC approval of NASDAQ’s request to operate as an exchange beginning Aug. 1, NASD has succeeded in making that transformation. Leaving now will allow me to join the board of directors of Freddie Mac, which I anticipate doing in September, consider a couple of other corporate board opportunities, and return to Harvard a bit sooner.

“I am extremely proud of everything the NASD team has accomplished over the last six years, in particular NASD’s vital role in rebuilding public confidence in the securities markets after the dramatic downturn in 2000. I know Mary will lead the organization to even greater heights during her tenure,” he added.