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Remarks of Penelope W. Kyle Thank you Dan Boothe – wasn’t that just fabulous! I am truly honored by your original composition.
Thank you, Governor Kaine, Rector Kirk, President Steger, Members of the Board of Visitors and special guests. Thanks to you, faculty, staff, students, friends from my childhood in Galax, faculty from my teaching years at Thomas Nelson Community College, law school classmates and Richmond attorneys from the law firm of McGuire, Woods where I began my legal career and where my husband is a partner, co-workers from the Virginia Lottery, my wonderful family, my mother, brother, husband and children, and all those present who love and support Radford University! We also have in attendance, distinguished guests representing state government, members of the General Assembly and presidents and representatives from other colleges and universities. Your presence here today honors this institution and emphasizes the importance of higher education in the Commonwealth and the world today. When the Board of Visitors announced my appointment as the sixth President of Radford University last year, friends and business associates wondered if I were doing the right thing. I truly believed that I had made the right decision and I was excited about what lay ahead. As a girl growing up not 50 miles from here in Galax, in these mountains we all know and love, I knew and admired Radford University when it was still Radford College. Many of my classmates from Galax High School attended and graduated from Radford College. I am a proud product of the Virginia public education system, I attended the public schools in Galax, and also graduated from two of Virginia’s public institutions of higher education. Before coming to Radford, I spent 11 years in the service of our Commonwealth at the Virginia Lottery, raising money for public education in Virginia, kindergarten through 12th grade. I stand before you today, firmly committed to Virginia’s public education system, and to Radford University. I am one of you. I will use my energy, my talent, and my experience to work for this university, to bring it all of the resources and the stature it deserves, in the Commonwealth, the Nation and the World. Big dreams and big aspirations, but together we can make a good university a great one! So yes. I knew I was doing the right thing last year. And nothing I have seen or heard in my time on campus since has diminished my enthusiasm for the challenges that lie ahead. I want everyone here to know how grateful I am to have the opportunity to contribute not only to the life of Radford University but also to the Commonwealth of Virginia. I am honored that the Board of Visitors would place this great trust and responsibility in my hands. I feel that I am here at the right place, at the right time – for me – and I hope for all of you and this wonderful university.
An inauguration is a momentous occasion, not only for the institution that is inaugurating a president, but for higher education in general. Some of you have asked why we didn’t hold my inauguration during my first year here. The answer is a very practical one. We needed - I needed - time to completely absorb the university, study its culture, learn about its core beliefs and values - its history, and traditions. I needed to find out what was working, and what did not appear to be productive, and to start the process of change. We also needed to decide whether or not we should hold an inauguration! Should we take the time, spend the money - frankly that was the discussion! I sought the advice of many on this topic – faculty, staff, students, members of the Board of Visitors and the answer was a resounding YES! Everyone wanted to have this occasion to celebrate another milestone at their university. And we also needed time to search for, and attract, the best people we could find in higher education today to fill key positions on both the academic side and administrative side of the university. These positions had been left vacant mainly by retirements of long time employees. It was crucial to our journey that we stop, take the time, and find people who are the very best fit for the positions we needed to fill. At the first convocation of my tenure here as president, in August of 2005, I presented a list of positions we needed, including a new one that I felt was crucial to the success of Radford’s journey. We have created and filled the new position of Provost (Dr. Ivelaw Griffith), filled the position of Vice President for Finance and Administration (Ms. Donna VanCleave) and most recently extended an offer to a candidate to fill the newly created position of Chief Information Technology Officer. We still have 2 more senior management positions to fill. We should take this opportunity to reminisce about what was and to imagine what could be. It is a time to celebrate what is the best in this institution, and to let our dreams soar, as we articulate our journey into the future. Often – at inaugurations – the alumni and friends of the university are simply hoping that the new president “will do no harm.” They love their institution as it is and they want their new president to preserve the status quo. But this has not been the case for me here at Radford University. All of you – from the Search Committee, to the faculty who interviewed me, to the alumni and friends of this institution – not one of you has said to me “we want our school to remain just as it is.” In fact, I have been encouraged to “shake things up,” to re-examine why we do things the way we do and to lead all of us in determining and then shaping the Radford that we want and that the Commonwealth needs in this 21st century. I am very conscious at this moment of the fact that I am the first woman President of Radford University. I should acknowledge that, while RU was exclusively a college for women for the first 50 or so years of its existence, it was led exclusively by men. Up until now! My predecessors were strong men, fine men, men of character, who were right for the times. Dr. John P. McConnell, 1911-1937, Dr. David Peters, 1938-1951, Dr. Charles Martin, 1952-1972, Dr. Donald Dedmon, 1972-1994 and, most recently, my predecessor, Dr. Douglas Covington, who honors us by his attendance today - each left his stamp on this institution. If you look around this campus you will find their names on our buildings--names of past presidents, along with names of women who gave their time, talent, energy, and yes, love, to Radford College. I will name just a few here. Moffett Hall, after the beloved Dr. M’Lege Moffett, Dean of Women, who devoted 49 years of her life to Radford University. More recently, Hurlburt Hall, the new student center, named after Dr. Bonnie Hurlburt, Dean of Students, who spent 48 years as a student and administrator at Radford. Dr. Hurlburt is also here today, and of course, we are delighted to welcome her. Nancy Necessary Pridemore, graduate of Radford College, worked quietly all her life as a high school drama teacher. She then astounded everyone by leaving much of her estate to her beloved alma mater. Pridemore Playhouse is fittingly named after her. Soon Beatrice Covington’s lovely smile, her warmth and her love of Radford University and its students will be commemorated forever with the completion of the fine arts center named for both her and Dr. Covington. Waldron Hall was named for Elbert, Evelyn and Karen Waldron, benefactors from whose generosity the College of Health and Human Services has benefited. Each year, more than 40 students in this College receive Waldron scholarships. Karen Waldron, the daughter of Elbert and Evelyn Waldron, is now serving her second term on the Board of Visitors and is here today with her husband, Shawn Ricci, who is a graduate of Radford University. Two other names that are found on our buildings are deeply imbedded in the annals of Virginia’s history, and have inspired me since I was a little girl. We have Ingles Hall and Draper Hall. I remember reading about pioneer Mary Draper Ingles when I was a student at Galax Elementary School. In 1755, after being captured by Indians, or Native Americans, she heroically escaped and journeyed over 800 circuitous and dangerous miles back to the New River Valley and Radford, and the family she loved so well. Well, I am certainly no pioneer hero! But in some ways I guess I am a pioneer, and I hope I can draw strength and courage from Radford’s own great heroine. Thinking about it, my journey to this stage today has been long and circuitous, too. I did, indeed, take “the long way home” to Radford!
Our University has many challenges – or opportunities – ahead of us, but there are three on which I wish to focus. 1. First, we must maintain our nation’s commitment to social mobility by offering the opportunity of a good education to all; In striving to provide equal opportunity for all, no matter their background, public higher education has been one of the glories of American life. That is why access to higher education is one of the great educational (and political) issues of the day. Radford and campuses like it have offered an education and a road out of poverty for thousands of students over the years. All of us can take pride in the part we have played in that. In the midst of global competition, this commitment to access is more important than ever. Nothing is more significant in our national life than making sure that our young people graduate from high school and college equipped not just with a diploma, but also with the skills they need to make their way in this new global economy. As a native of Southwest Virginia, I am acutely aware of the educational opportunities of which many of my classmates could not avail themselves. This institution, more than perhaps any other in the Commonwealth, prides itself on the number of first generation students that matriculate here. We must maintain the great tradition of Radford as a lower-tuition institution, accessible to all. Most of you may be aware that of all the public institutions of higher education in Virginia, Radford is one of the least costly. I am committed to keeping the doors of this campus open to those who most need its benefits. We will continue to admit students without regard to need – and we will figure out how to meet those needs after the admissions decision has been made. And my vision is that this access will extend to the full diversity of people who want the benefits of a Radford education. Our message to lower income families, to minority Americans, to immigrants, to those challenged in English, to those challenged with disabilities, to first generation students, to the young, and those enjoying their retirement years must be the same: Radford University is a great place for you — and we want you here and we will do all that we possibly can to enable you to be a student here. 2. Second, we absolutely must understand other languages and cultures; We’ve all learned in recent years just how important it is to understand the languages and culture of peoples all over the world. As a commission on study abroad announced just last year: “On the international stage, what nations don’t know can hurt them. The stakes involved in study abroad are that simple, that straightforward and that important. For their own future and that of the nation, college graduates today must be internationally competent.” Our Commission on the Future of the University has recommended that Radford become a leader in international education. We already have a start, thanks to the Rector of the Radford University Board of Visitors, R. J. Kirk, who through a large gift to the University, established the Zylphia Shu-En Kirk Endowment. Our study abroad programs take undergraduate and graduate students and faculty to more than 30 foreign lands, there to become immersed in — and more familiar with — the languages, customs and habits of the rest of the world. Meanwhile, the entire campus community benefits from the insights of people from other lands on our campus. We have students from 34 nations studying here at Radford as our international flags represent. They enrich our intellectual and social lives enormously. And we regularly host outstanding foreign academics, such as Dr. Murat Ferman, Professor in International Marketing who is spending this academic year as a visiting professor from Istanbul, Turkey. And I want to note another international guest, who in 1984 was Radford’s first Distinguished Visiting Professor, and who will again be gracing our campus today as a part of this inauguration celebration. I am referring, of course, to Dr. Jehan Sadat, the First Lady of Egypt from 1970 to 1981, who will be joining Dr. Maya Angelou (who also was a Distinguished Visiting Professor here at RU) and Virginia’s First Lady, Anne Holton, in a symposium this afternoon on “Women’s Leadership in a Global Society.” So Radford has a lot of which we can be proud in international education, but we absolutely know that we need to do more. I’d like to see the day when half or more of our students spend at least one semester, preferably a full academic year, studying and living abroad. And, we need to have stronger ties to universities in other countries so that we can exchange students, faculty, and, most importantly, knowledge. 3. And lastly, we must focus on serving the community in which we are located – both educationally and economically. In my time on campus, I have been greatly impressed with what a solid community this is. I think it’s important as Radford moves forward that we preserve and enhance this sense of community throughout Southwest Virginia. Let’s work with local schools to improve math and science instruction. Let’s make sure that we’re trying to identify and support promising young students from disadvantaged backgrounds so that they understand a university education at Radford is there for them. Let’s orient some of our graduate research around business development in the New River Valley or environmental challenges in the area and most importantly, let’s collaborate more with our good neighbor over the hill – Virginia Tech. If these two institutions pool their resources, President Steger, our Southwest Virginia community will be well served. So, Radford will continue to support and strengthen all of our relationships with this wonderful community that surrounds and sustains us. How, then, do we proceed here at Radford University? Since I arrived on campus, I have been asked many times about my vision for Radford University. Let me say that Radford will have a vision, but it will not be only mine. As I have said many times, I have no intention of imposing a vision that is solely my own on this institution. It will be a vision that arises out of conversations already underway on our campus. That is not to say that I don’t have my own ideas about how we should define ourselves. But I want to respect this planning process - this conversation and see where it takes us. There is so much here that is vibrant, healthy and strong. Together, we are going to tap the human and financial resources necessary to continue our journey towards excellence. Finally, I have left to last a lot of “thank yous” that I owe to many of you. I want to thank both Governor Kaine and First Lady Holton for being here today and participating in this Inauguration ceremony and in the Women’s Leadership Symposium that will be held this afternoon. I’m grateful for the support that Former Rector Mary Ann Hovis has provided to me as I’ve learned my way around my new career and I am thankful for the advice and support of Dr. Claire Waldron, President of the Faculty Senate, who has given a great deal of her time this year in meeting with me and in serving in many capacities representing our outstanding faculty. And to our faculty, I know, for you many of you, I was not your first choice, but you have not let that stand in the way of our working together to advance this wonderful University. And we all owe a big thank you to our University staff, who keep this institution running every day and who are responsible for our campus looking as beautiful as it is. The most important people in my world — and the greatest source of strength to me are my mother Penelope Whitley Ward Kyle, my brother Lanny — my husband, Charles Menges, our three children, Kyle, Whitley, and Patricia Lee. They have been a wonderful support to me throughout my career. Let me just say that when Charlie and I married twenty five years ago, our anniversary was Tuesday, I knew I was doing the right thing then, too! I knew I had a “keeper.” Here we are, all these years later, with three wonderful children, the center of our lives. Thank you all. Your love and support has made it possible for me to stand here today. So, as Radford University moves forward, let us move forward together. Let us do so with confidence because we have a very strong foundation on which to build. This university’s long tradition of teaching and learning, of affordability, access, and of commitment to the citizens of Southwest Virginia and the Commonwealth of Virginia is a huge advantage. I promise that I will work with you to prepare Radford University for the future. Thank you again for allowing me to have this incredible opportunity. |
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