The state of the University of Virginia? Why, still Virginia! We kid.
President John Casteen delivered his final State of the University Address this afternoon at Old Cabell Hall. With less than 90 minutes to get at efforts of the last year in addition to the 19 before, Casteen managed to touch upon most of the efforts tackled by the UVA during his time, from the $3 billion capital campaign and efforts to find sources of revenue outside of state tax revenues to technological advances and what he called "missed opportunities."
"What I cannot responsibly do is provide a more general consensus about the future," said Casteen, who added that work would fall to incoming Teresa Sullivan. Read more after the photo.
Casteen took to finances first, and praised UVA’s successful efforts to develop diverse revenue sources—also a focus of Chief Operating Officer Leonard Sandridge’s contribution to the 2008-2009 President’s Report. He spoke of former Governor Tim Kaine’s proposal for a one-day furlough for state employees as a short-term solution, and said that the system "doesn’t make a lot of sense." He noted the improvement of UVA’s endowment from a low point of $3.76 billion in February 2009, saying that UVA "is a long-term investor—it expects ups and downs."
AccessUVA continues to function as it was intended, said Casteen, who added that the current class of first-year students supported by AccessUVA topped the previous year’s number by several hundred students. After expanding the student body came expanding the university: Casteen said that the scale of UVA could feasibly be broadened by looking beyond the 250 Bypass. "That’s not impossible work. It can be done," he added, and emphasized planning and pursuit of state funding.
President-elect Teresa Sullivan will inherit a capital campaign that is nine days behind schedule, according to Casteen. "To be nine days behind on a $3 billion campaign in this environment is a success," he said, before asking those who know Bob Sweeney, UVA’s Vice President of Development, to pat him on the back.
Casteen took a few minutes to remind the audience that, while Charlottesville is "considered to be a safe community," incidents like the death of Morgan Harrington—the daughter of a faculty member, Casteen pointed out, referring to Dan Harrington’s work with the Carillion Roanoke Memorial Hospital—function as reminders that "bad things can happen and do happen." "If you see a person in need of help or intervention, offer," said Casteen.
The rest of Casteen’s speech was lighter in tone. The president spoke of multiple buildings completed during his time at UVA, along with advances in technology ("In 1990, a BlackBerry was something you ate.")
Casteen also mentioned what he termed "missed opportunities," referencing UVA’s Arts Gateway project and the school’s "need to build vigorous experiences in mathematics." Yet projects like the McIntire School of Commerce’s "Back to the Lawn" move suggested that there were plenty of opportunities capitalized on, said Casteen.
Then, with his thanks to colleagues and the University at large, Casteen said that he looked forward to returning to UVA as a faculty member.
