 Thank you very much. Thank you for bestowing on me this awesome honor and responsibility Thank you to the board of trustees in particular chair David Dagle and vice chair Ron Lumbre and the search committee and All the faculty staff students and alumni For trusting me with leading this great institution Thank you to Governor Scott Senator Leahy Embarrassed about that thing that's flying over the capital, but thank you very much and All the assembled government representatives and of course to friends Who've traveled great distances to mark this occasion? I? Credit my parents most of all For instilling in their children values and confidence that have stayed with us They're traveling Overseas and could not be here today, but I know they'll be watching the proceedings. Thank you mom and dad My sister and brother and their families are here today as are my wife Lakshmi. I Don't have to look at the names Daughter shruti and son Sanjay To all members of my family I dedicate this occasion thanks also to my mentors And my predecessors especially Tom Sullivan Who has given me the greatest gift of? Taking on leadership of a university That is on a great trajectory and brimming with optimism and to all of you members of the UVM family And the broader community and friends for welcoming us to UVM and Helping us mark this important transition as I stand at this lectern That belong to renowned philosopher and educational reformer and UVM graduate John Dewey I'm reminded of UVM's proud history of firsts Our university founded in 1791 is the fifth oldest college in New England Starting as a private liberal arts school and becoming one of the founding public land grant institutions UVM is the first American university With a charter declaring that no preference shall be given to any religious sect or denomination We were among the first universities to defy custom and admit women as students and Our Phi Beta Kappa chapter was the nation's first to admit women and African-American students as members How do we now continue to build on this proud heritage of 228 years? I know the faculty of UVM Offer great and distinctive strengths That will ensure that the university flourishes in the face of any headwinds and challenges As long as we are guided by a three-fold mindset first We all can agree that our most solemn responsibility is to the success of our students They deserve the highest quality education we can offer Students should expect our support and mentorship But we must also help them Plan for success in their lives after graduation through advising and Connections to enriching internships and service learning opportunities right from their first semester Ensuring success also means importantly That we do all we can to make a UVM education affordable and accessible to a wide diversity of students A connected second part of this framework is for us to double down on strengths UVM is known for Enhance our research on scholarship and our reputation and renown in these areas and Contribute knowledge for the betterment of society and to solve global challenges The third part of this framework is to fully embrace and celebrate our land grant mission One of the key attractions as you heard in my coming to UVM was that it is a land grant university Indeed it is the home state of senator Justin Smith moral Who conceived the land grant mission that president Abraham Lincoln signed into law? Unleashing what I believe to be one of the greatest experiments in higher education I Have the honor of being inspired daily by senator morals desk that sits in my office It is to me the greatest perk of my position senator morals land grant vision Speaks to our responsibility to bring the significant assets of our university to bear on our community governor Scott I Sincerely believe that The success of our state is inextricably linked with the success of UVM and We will do all we can to enhance the intellectual Human economic and social capital of our community. I've been guided in my journey over the decades by a short poem I first studied and committed to memory in grade school It goes like this Where the mind is without fear and the head is held high Where knowledge is free? Where the world has not been broken up into fragments by narrow domestic walls Where words come out from the depth of truth? Where tireless driving stretches its arms towards perfection? With a clear stream of reason has not lost its way the dreary desert sand of dead habit Where the mind where the mind is led forward by thee into ever-widening thought and action Into that heaven of freedom my father let my country awake This poem was written by Rabindranath Tagore in 1913 many years before India won its hard fought independence So what is that heaven of freedom to which we aspire today? You heard that I spent some time at the US State Department at the Jefferson Science Fellow What better source to draw upon then Than from the nation's second president Thomas Jefferson who said Let us in education dream of an aristocracy of achievement arising out of a democracy of opportunity I'll say that one more time Let us in education dream of an aristocracy of achievement Rising out of a democracy of opportunity It is that very democracy of opportunity that I hope UVM will be proud to help bring about Opportunity made available irrespective of one's origin or skin color sexual orientation or identity or economic background our university's early example and Our enduring goals enshrined in the values we call our common ground demanded Our diversity is our strength. It must be our inspiration Many have shared kind sentiments. Certainly you heard many today and Best wishes for this special day one From my master's thesis advisor dr. Richard Christensen Speaks directly to the solemn responsibility of a president to serve and support the university students and faculty He said he who would be the greatest among you let him be a servant You now assume a position of leadership where you can render great service to your university the students and the faculty Your most lasting service could be to figure out how to reduce the cost of a good college education Dr. Christensen, I will do my best Some despair that our nation is irreparably broken up into fragments by narrow domestic walls But our faith and optimism must endure In his acceptance speech to parliament upon election as prime minister of India Narendra Modi said Some see a glass as half empty Others as half full. I see it as full half with water and half with air Despite the challenges and headwinds facing us I to subscribe to this glass full view of the world UVM has a wonderful tradition of convocation as our first-year students embark upon their college journey The theme during convocation this year was explorers forever It calls on us to explore To not be afraid to expose ourselves to new perspectives to learn from all around us indeed To turn mirrors into windows Which as noted journalist Sydney Harris said is the whole purpose of education After all if not during our students time at the university then when Our Students of Fulbright Udall Goldwater and Truman scholars and Peace Corps were volunteers Our four-year graduation rates are at an all-time high and place us in the top few percent of The public schools in this country and for the fifth year in a row Our incoming class is the highest academic credentials in our history in terms of test scores and so much more Our students are up to the challenge. I Know that our faculty and staff are too this wonderful tradition of an installation celebrates a new era It is not about my being installed as president But a marking of an important transition and An expression of our collective will and aspiration to reach even greater heights. I Wish for all of us a mind without fear and a head held high as We work to enable our students bright future You have my commitment to contribute all I can in our upcoming journey together Thank you very much. Thank you