Inauguration of the 29th President: Gregory L. Fenves
In a ceremony filled with the presidential emblems, sweeping views of the Forty Acres and music from university and community ensembles, Gregory L. Fenves was formally inaugurated as the 29th president of The University of Texas at Austin on Sept. 17.
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Photos by Marsha Miller
In a ceremony filled with the presidential emblems, sweeping views of the Forty Acres and music from university and community ensembles, Gregory L. Fenves was formally inaugurated as the 29th president of The University of Texas at Austin on Sept. 17.
He also delivered his first-ever State of the University address, in which he laid out his vision to build on the university’s excellence by more effectively merging its research and teaching missions and fostering interdisciplinary collaboration and research.
“The challenges facing our world are large. The issues confronting society are complex. And the stakes are high,” Fenves told students, faculty members, alumni, state leaders and other supporters moments after being formally inaugurated and presented the presidential symbols of office.
“And where will we find answers? At places like The University of Texas at Austin. Universities are the incubators of our future where we assemble the most talented people to solve the toughest problems.”
View photos and video from the inauguration celebration and continue to follow him on Twitter (@gregfenves) and Instagram (@gregfenves).
The Austin Independent School District Children’s Choir came a day early to rehearse their performance at inauguration.
President Fenves joins his parents, Norma and Steven Fenves, before the inauguration ceremony begins. Steven Fenves, like his son, spent his career in academia. “My parents’ life stories, their belief in education, and their examples of doing the right thing set a standard that I strive to reach every day,” said President Fenves in his State of the University address.
Hannah Fenves, the president’s daughter, helps her grandfather with his regalia, as her mother, Carmel Fenves, looks on. Professor Steven Fenves, Greg’s father, represented the University of Illinois as a delegate in the faculty processional. “Behind every successful person is a partner who inspires,” the president said about his wife, Carmel.
Andrea Gore, chair of the Faculty Council and professor of pharmacology, emcees the inauguration ceremony, held in the Texas Performing Arts Center.
The Hon. Antonio O. Garza Jr., president of the Texas Exes, gives the president the official ring of the University of Texas. The ring is one of five presidential emblems Fenves received as part of the inauguration ceremony.
Staff Council Chair Stuart Tendler gives President Fenves the gavel of office.
Professors Maria Juenger, chair of the Graduate Assembly, and William Beckner, past chair of Faculty Council, help President Fenves don the presidential regalia, the third of five presidential emblems.
Student Government President Xavier M. Rotnofsky gives President Fenves the medallion of office.
Board of Regents Vice Chairman R. Steven Hicks, B.A. ’72, gives President Fenves the mace of authority.
Members of the University of Texas System Board of Regents join in the singing of the National Anthem. From left, Justin Drake, B.S. ’11; Sara Martinez Tucker, B.J. ’76, MBA ’79; Wallace Hall, B.A. ’84; Alex Cranberg, B.S. ’77; and Ernest Aliseda. The regents were among hundreds of dignitaries and guests who joined the celebration, including delegates from 72 universities, deans from UT Austin colleges and schools, vice presidents, faculty, staff, students and friends of the university.
A highlight of the ceremony was music by several groups from the university, including The University of Texas Chamber Singers, The University of Texas Concert Chorale and University Chorus, and The University of Texas Symphony Orchestra. President Fenves highlighted the importance and value of the arts in his State of the University address.
The Austin Independent School District Children’s Choir were special guests at the ceremony, performing alongside the talented students from the Butler School of Music. James Morrow conducts the University of Texas Symphony Orchestra and leads the music from the orchestra pit. The appearance of the children’s choir represented the close relationship the university enjoys with the Austin and Central Texas community.
University of Texas System Chancellor William McRaven, B.J. ’77, introduces President Fenves at the inauguration.
The culmination of the ceremony was the president’s first State of the University address. In promoting the value of public research universities Fenves explained that UT Austin must build on its long-term goals of cultivating excellence and operating efficiently with a new goal of being more effective. To accomplish this, it will pursue faculty research and scholarship that effectively help develop new knowledge and solutions and contribute to the university’s mission of changing the world. “Texas needs a research university that pursues excellence in everything it does,” he said. “Our students need an education that effectively prepares them for life and for careers that may not even exist today. And the taxpayers need to know that we efficiently translate their dollars into value.”
Fenves acknowledged the university’s strong history and noted the beginning of a new era. “We will lead in defining the role of the public research university, based in excellence, effectiveness and efficiency,” he said. “After all, we are ‘the university of what’s next.’ And what’s next for us is a brighter future that will be created by an even stronger commitment to being a university of the first class.”
Before the Longhorn Band led the assembly in “The Eyes of Texas,” President Fenves was honored once more before greeting guests at a reception in the Texas Performing Arts Center.
As the ceremony came to a close, the Longhorn Band led a rousing rendition of “The Eyes of Texas,” and everyone, from the president and dignitaries on stage to the packed house in the audience, put their horns up to sing. Photo by Christina Murrey
