University of Virginia Library

STATEMENT BY THE RECTOR

Report of the Special Committee
on the Nomination of A President
By Fred G. Pollard, Rector
University of Virginia
January 24, 1985

For only the sixth time in the University of Virginia's long and distinguished history, the Board of Visitors meets today to receive the nomination of a new President. The election of a President is the single most important action that this body can take, and our decision today will introduce a new era-for this great institution — as has been the case with the election of each of the previous Presidents since 1904.

On March 16, 1984, Frank L. Hereford Jr., advised the Board that he wished to relinquish the Office of President by the end of his eleventh year, the Summer of 1985. He has served the University with such distinction and dedication that the Board could do no less than honor his request.

As prescribed by the Manual of the Board of Visitors, I appointed a Special Committee on the Nomination of a President.

At the same time, the Faculty Senate and the Student Council were asked to form committees to make nominations to the Special Committee. The Committee also sought nominations from the Alumni and others. I cannot say enough about the quality of the work carried out by the students and the faculty. Their deliberations and insight were of great value to the Board's Special Committee and the caliber of the nominees that they submitted was outstanding.

In all, 312 nominations were received. The faculty submitted 17 names as being qualified and the students submitted 28 names. Ten of those on the students' list were also on the faculty list. The man we recommend was high on both lists.

I would be remiss not to thank the members of the Search Committee for their untiring efforts. We met on ten occasions and in addition we studied hundreds of pages of reports. I think their reward is that we all feel that we have found the best possible man for the University.

The Committee sought most to find a person who could build on the tremendous momentum provided by Frank Hereford's leadership. During this period the University has made enormous strides academically. We have just completed the most successful three-year fund drive of any publicly supported institution of higher learning. Our new $225 million hospital is funded and ready for construction.

We have become competitive in intercollegiate athletics. The students who come here are unmatched. We enjoy a strong relationship with the executive and legislative branches of the Commonwealth.

In short, the momentum generated by Frank Hereford has made it possible for any qualified Virginian to attend a nationally-recognized university without having to leave the Commonwealth. We believe we have found the man to accelerate that momentum -to lead the University to new heights during its next era. He is Robert Marchant O'Neil. A distinguished scholar and writer by any measure, he is President of the University of Wisconsin system and one of its law professors. The Wisconsin system has an annual budget of $1.3 billion.

Impressive as that may sound, the Special Committee was even more persuaded by Mr. O'Neil's commitment to values that have long been identified with the University of Virginia, such as the importance of the liberal arts in the education of all men and women. He is an excellent classroom teacher and has written extensively on contemporary issues—particularly on the First Amendment. He has gained important experience at the university level as chief academic and administrative officer at Indiana University's Bloomington campus and as vice president and provost for academic affairs at the University of Cincinnati.

He received his Bachelor's and Master's degrees in American History from Harvard University and his law degree from Harvard in 1961.

Mr. O'Neil is well known for his skills in working on behalf of higher education at the state and federal legislative levels. He is an able fund raiser.

He is highly regarded in national higher education circles, serving on the boards of the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, the Council on Post-Secondary Accreditation, the Educational Testing Service and the Johnson Foundation. He chairs the Financial Resource Development Committee of the Center for Research Libraries and the Legal Affairs Committee of the National Association of State Universities and Land-Grant Colleges.

The Committee recognized, also, that Mr. O'Neil's wife, Karen, would be a special asset to the University family as would their four children. Mrs. O'Neil, a Vassar graduate, is a gracious hostess, and is a scholar in her own right. She was co-author with her husband of a book, Civil Liberties: Case Studies and the Law.

Wherever our committee turned its search these last ten months, Robert O'Neil's name came forward. Leaders in higher learning throughout the country told us, "Bob O'Neil is the man you want." We found them right.

The Search Committee recommends that Mr. O'Neil be elected the University's next President.