Breaking: Levin Steps Down

Yale President Richard C. Levin — the longest-serving current president in the Ivy League — will be stepping down at the end of the academic year. Click here for the release.

Here is a snippet from the Yale Office of Public Affairs which outlines his major accomplishments:

Levin advanced Yale’s schools and academic programs and, particularly, strengthening science, engineering, and medicine at Yale, transformed Yale’s physical campus with the largest building and renovation program since the 1930s, built partnerships with the City of New Haven to create a new model for how universities can be leading citizens for their host communities, and re-envisioned what it means to be a university in a globalized world, and then expanded Yale’s international activities accordingly.

Obviously there has been well-documented dissatisfaction in the Yale athletic community about the University’s approach to its athletics, but take a look at what Dave Holahan of Connecticut Magazine reminded folks about Levin a few years ago:

“He is widely credited with saving Yale from a deep Blue funk, a downward spiral toward mediocrity during the 1980s and early 1990s. Before Levin took the reins in late 1993, the university had become the collegiate embodiment of Murphy’s Law. There was a large operating deficit, deteriorating buildings and proposed faculty cutbacks. Everyone, it seemed, was angry about something: professors, students, alumni, employees, parents and townies.”

I am moving to New Haven in the coming weeks. I suspect without his commitment and work, that would have never happened.

Truly, the University and the city owe him their gratitude.

This entry was posted on Thursday, August 30th, 2012 at 8:36 am. It is filed under Athletes, Spotlight. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.