 Good afternoon everyone. On behalf of the University of Vermont Board of Trustees, I welcome you all to the installation of Dr. Suresh V. Garamela's installation as the 27th President of the University of Vermont. These chapel pews today are overflowing with devoted friends of the University of Vermont. And the consequence of your collective efforts is the University has made tremendous progress over the last several decades. I stand before you in awe. I know almost all of you. But I'm awed by the level of contributions and sacrifices that you have made over time to make this institution stronger and better. And I thank you for that. Before we get underway, I'd like to take a few minutes to recognize a few special guests. And I would like to start with our senior elected officials who are here with us today. Let me first welcome Senior Senator from Vermont, United States Senator Patrick Leahy. Also with us, current governor of Vermont and former trustee, or current trustee, Phil Scott. And we have former governor and trustee, James Douglas. I'd like to acknowledge the contributions of two former presidents. One is with us today, Daniel Mark Fogel. And our most recent president, Tom Sullivan, both of them made contributions to this university over their terms that are consequential and lasting. And we thank you both for everything you've done and all your commitments to the University of Vermont. Please, I'd like to welcome all of our current and former trustees who are here with us today. We have two prior board chairs, Deb McEnany and Frank Bolden. If you're in the audience, could you please stand quickly? Thank you very much. And then to all of our senior campus leaders, including our deans or student and staff governance presidents, and a large contingent of UVM Foundation leaders that we have with us today, thank you and welcome. We had the largest, most diverse search committee for this search that we have ever had at the University of Vermont. I'm very proud of the work that that search committee did from start to finish. And I'd like to just recognize all of you who are here today, who are on the search committee, if I could ask you to stand. I want to personally thank you because it was such a rich and rewarding experience for me, but I think we ended up in a great place and it was because of your efforts. So could you please stand? And finally to the family and friends of Dr. Garamella that have traveled here today from afar to be with us on this special day for him in his honor. Welcome to UVM and we hope you enjoy and stay for the weekend. It is an extraordinary place to be on a fall weekend and we hope you can enjoy it. To those of us who've worked in the corporate world for a long time, this ceremony, this event is a little peculiar to be honest. Even as a CEO in the corporate world, you accept the position, you start work, and only upon retirement might you be entitled to a small ceremony and it's nothing like this. No procession, no regalia, no mace, no medallion, just expectations and responsibility. Those two you have Suresh. This occasion is as distinctly special as it is infrequent and it justifiably deserves such a ceremony. In the long history of the University of Vermont, we've only had 27 presidents. By contrast, over essentially the same time period, we've had 45 presidents of the United States. Suresh, you'll be happy to learn that we evidently like our UVM presidents better than our United States presidents. The academy, as I've come to learn, is rich in traditions such as this and they are quite special. They afford us the opportunity to reflect on the critically important purpose of this institution. They signal noteworthy and historic change, but importantly at the same time, they reinforce ideals that we hope never change. We affirm the good that is done here. With great joy and promise, we invite Dr. Garumel and his family into our UVM community. With full faith and confidence, we solemnly entrust UVM to his leadership. Oscar Wilde once wrote, there's only one thing in the world worse than being talked about and that's not being talked about. With that in mind and to spare Suresh the pain of not being talked about, we should talk about him. As I became more familiar with Suresh during the search process, there were a few attributes and qualities in him that I found quite appealing. There was the range of skills and experiences that were suitable for a presidential role, teacher, researcher, engineer, advisor, fundraiser, negotiator, volunteer, immigrant, all relevant for today's presidential positions. There was the primacy of the student in his mental model of how a university should work. To quote from one of his interviews, and you may hear this again and again over his term, if we are not doing this for the students, then why are we here? That was the very first interview we had with him. And then there was the endearing sense of humor, which you may also see from time to time. At our very first in-person search committee meeting with Suresh, when Cindy Barnhart introduced herself as the chancellor at MIT, he looked directly at her and said, yes, I know who you are, you're the one I'm afraid of. Suresh, it is with deep affection and gratitude that we embrace you into our UVM family. I hope and expect that you will leave UVM and by extension the state of Vermont in a better place than you found them. Please lead this institution with great care, with humility, courage, and wisdom. If you do so, we will all be changed for the better. Thank you. Thank you, David. Please welcome the governor of the state of Vermont, the honorable Philip B. Scott, class of 1980. What wasn't mentioned was that I'm the 82nd governor, which means we like our UVM presidents more than we like our governors as well. What a great day here in Vermont. What a beautiful day to be here in Vermont and what a great day it is for our state. It's good to be back here at my alma mater among students, faculty, staff, alumni, Senator Marcel Lahey, and others for this really very special occasion as we formally installed Dr. Garamella as UVM's 27th president. I'm happy to welcome him, his family, and his friends here to the Green Mountain State. On my first day in office as governor nearly three years ago, I issued an executive order outlining the goals of my administration to grow the economy, make Vermont more affordable, and protect the most vulnerable. Three very simple principles would guide us in every policy, every decision we make. I mention this because the University of Vermont plays an important role in all three of these areas. As a land grant university and the state's only research institution, it's hard to overstate UVM's importance here in the state and here in Vermont. It's estimated the university has over a $1.3 billion annual economic impact for the state while supporting more than 11,000 jobs and playing a critical role in training, educating future members of the workforce. This is really important to us because it's no secret that Vermont is facing demographic challenges. Since 2009, our labor force has declined by 14,000. 14,000 fewer people working are looking for work. 14,000 fewer Vermonters available for jobs we know businesses are trying to fill right now. As we work to address these challenges, UVM will continue to play a role because there are thousands of students, many from out of state who we desperately need to stay right here in Vermont. And because they go to UVM, we know they've been given a great foundation to make an impact in our communities. Before Dr. Garamella's appointment, I was announced earlier this year. I had the pleasure and opportunity to meet with him at my office in Montpelier. We discuss some of these challenges and the many opportunities our state faces. And I was thrilled to learn about some of the great work he's done in the areas of workforce and economic development while at Purdue University. It was clear to me he was more than willing to use that experience to help his newly adopted state for this commitment. Although I may be somewhat biased as a lifelong Vermonter, an alum of UVM, I think Vermont is extremely fortunate to be home to one of the best most versatile universities in the country. A true public ivy. Whether it's in its world-class medical school, the humanities, arts, business, or STEM fields, UVM attracts a talented faculty who build upon its already strong reputation. Over the past several years under the capable leadership of President Sullivan with a growing endowment and a successful capital campaign, new facilities and a strong enrollment, UVM's image has risen even further and I'm confident it will continue to do so in the future. So, thank you so much for choosing to come to UVM. Thank you for your commitment to our state and I look forward to working with you in the years to come to build an even more prosperous university and an even stronger Vermont. Thank you very much. Thank you, Governor Scott. Please welcome the honorable Patrick Leahy United States Senator. Okay. More than I deserve. Thank you. Thank you very, very much. Thank you. Well, I appreciate that. I appreciate the chance to follow my friend the Governor of our state and to be here to welcome Dr. Garamella. Welcome to Vermont. And welcome as the 27th President of the University of Vermont. Now, Marcel and I had a chance to get to know President Garamella and his wife, Laxmere, who was right here over the past month. And then we got to talk with their wonderful children today discussing everything from how you do a debate team to the fact that they're studying a low part greater than anything I ever faced. But I'm proud of them. But here in our time together, I've seen with our new President a leader who understands the value of environmental stewardship, community development, those things that set the University of Vermont apart. I'm proud that Vermont's land grant university is rising to meet today's challenges. Something President Sullivan and I talked about a lot as we went into that area. It's record of public engagement. Academic excellence is true to the vision of Justin Morrill. He was a great Vermont congressman and he became the greatest United States senator by far this state has ever produced, including President Company. And he with his friendship with President Lincoln, they forged a concept to land grant colleges and universities. Now last week we saw student protesters fill streets around the world. We heard the United Nations once again warn of the ever-growing threats of climate change which, if anybody's wondering, are real. And here, I don't think anybody in this room was wondering, here in Burrington, UVM researchers are studying climate science, engineering. On this historic campus, students are learning not just to talk about it, but to be leaders in the fight against climate change. And I think as President, Dr. Garimella will carry forward UVM's legacy of environmental innovation. Governor Scott has talked about the economy of our state and he has been a leader in that. And he knows that President Garimella also understands that UVM is an economic engine for our state and will remain as one. The President shares my commitment to helping our community strive. He sees the unique role higher education can play. Not only educating students, but to incubate new businesses to help existing businesses grow. In fact, he told me that a major factor in seeking this position he wants to see our students thrive and he wants to see our state thrive. And I know he's going to find ways for UVM to use this resources. Back in August, he joined me to announce a federal grant to fund the cutting edge research at the UVM Center on Rural Addiction. That's not just for this area, it's for the whole state for the most rural towns but also rural communities across the nation. We are leaders. And Mr. President, I thank you for your support of that. It serves our state in so many ways. The ladies came to Vermont in around 1850. I became the first lady to get a college degree. I can tell you that education is life changing. I saw the President say, thank you. Every Vermonner, she forgave me for the fact that our three children all have UVM degrees. But every Vermonner should be able to continue their education and training after high school. So I commend UVM for what it does to make college accessible to Vermonters but then working with our businesses to provide them the skilled workforce. And I would like to note ties between our students and Vermont's economy for our first day and a young adult to succeed. I'm taking pleasure if anybody could see the United States Capitol right now, this moment, you would see a flag being flown over it. That flag is being flown in honor of UVM's new President. Thank you. So thank you. You make us proud. You make our state proud. You make our country proud. That's what we want. Thank you all very much.