President Tom Tritton addresses the Haverford community with regards to his departure.
Friends:
I vividly remember the fall day in 1996 when board chair John Hurford called to offer me the job as Haverford's twelfth president. Desperately wanting to say something wise and sagacious, all I could manage was, "wow." Warming to the challenge, I eventually managed to say "yes," and the ensuing years have been filled with work, wonder, and an occasional frustration. Happily, not a day has passed when I haven't arisen in the morning realizing how lucky I am to be able to serve such a decidedly accomplished institution of higher learning.
However, everything has its seasons and its rhythms, so after careful and deliberate consideration, on Friday morning, April 21, I informed the Board of Managers that I will serve just one more year as Haverford's president.
I shall leave confident that the College is well aimed and possessing a bright future. Working together, this community has considerable accomplishment during the last decade: the academic program, created by a first-rate faculty, is flourishing; students are lively, committed, and idealistic as always; the campus, both built and natural, is inspiringly beautiful; finances, never Haverford's strongest suit, are secure; alums and friends are deeply attached and supportive in every conceivable way to the intellectual ideal and the Quaker purpose of the College.
Louise and I together have determined that this timing is right, both for us and for Haverford. We have great affection for this place and all of its people, and we look forward to sustained friendships with so many terrific Fords. Change, evolution, and rejuvenation are important, both for individuals and for institutions, so we shall take delight in considering the many directions available for our lives just as Haverford College will discover new passageways to greatness.
