University of Virginia President John T. Casteen III, the “father of the modern university,” died March 18 following a short battle with pancreatic cancer. He was 81.
Casteen served as UVA president from 1990 through 2010. Over that 20-year period, he built a reputation for expanding educational access and promoting UVA’s global reach. Amidst state budget cuts, UVA’s endowment grew from $488 million to $5.1 billion during Casteen’s presidency.
In 2003, Casteen founded AccessUVA, a need-based scholarship and financial aid program, in recognition of the transformative power of higher education.
Following Casteen’s passing, current UVA President Jim Ryan posted a tribute on social media, asking others to reflect on Casteen’s “truly remarkable and enduring legacy.”
“His leadership transformed UVA into a modern, world-class university, and his warm and welcoming personal style made him a beloved figure on Grounds,” Ryan wrote. “He was also a great friend and mentor to me, and I will miss his wise counsel and friendship.”
Prior to his time as president, Casteen earned his bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees from UVA, where he studied medieval literature. After getting his start as an assistant professor of English at the University of California, Berkeley, he returned to UVA in 1975 as dean of admissions before becoming Virginia’s secretary of education and president of the University of Connecticut. He eventually found his way home again in 1990, serving as a professor of English before succeeding Robert O’Neil as UVA’s seventh president.
Casteen is survived by his wife Elizabeth “Betsy” Casteen; daughter Elizabeth Ingeborg Casteen; sons John Thomas Casteen IV and Lars Löfgren Casteen; brothers Dennis Casteen and Tim Casteen; stepdaughters Alexandra Taylor Foote and Elizabeth Laura Robinson; and 12 grandchildren.
Photo via UVA Communications
