Thank you so much, Provost Kornbluth.
It's an absolute a thrill it is to be with you here – on one of the most beautiful
and iconic campuses in American higher education.
I am humbled to stand before you today, and I'm absolutely delighted to join you in honoring
Duke’s tenth president, my dear friend Vincent Price.
So, throughout today’s events, the spirit and the pride, the intellectual adventurousness
and the inclusiveness of the Duke community has shone brightly forth.
This is not only a beautiful campus but it's a happy one, as befits the occasion of welcoming
a new leader who is both capable and collegial, smart and insightful, caring and kind.
Now, I confess, I am a New Yorker by birth, and in the direct and blunt vernacular of
my home state we would say, ‘you done good!’
But, translated to North Carolinian that might be, ‘You all are feeling just now like the
cat that got the canary.’
So, I must confess that those of us from Penn, however, are feeling something different on
this occasion.
I think it can be put best by saying we’re feeling a little, a little like Kentucky after
a meet up with Christian Laettner.
We’re thrilled, aboslutely thrilled, for our good friend Vince, but it stings.
It stings.
You, you have nabbed the preeminent rapping scholar of our age.
Now truly, truly, if ever an academic match were made in heaven, this is the one.
Being on Abele Quad, amidst the magnificent façade of the Duke Chapel, cannot help but
remind me of the wonderfully important parallels between our two institutions.
Julian Abele, the namesake of the quad and architect of the chapel, was—need I tell
you?—a Penn grad.
In fact, he was the first African American graduate of our program of architecture, whose
works here at Duke and in Philadelphia and across the nation are celebrated to this day.
At Penn, as president, I have the unique honor of living in a house designed by Julian Abele.
It's a fine home, plumb and true, and for me, it's a daily reminder of how great universities
are born not of a day, but built with care and consummate skill over time.
Penn and Duke share that heritage of being built both deliberatively and lovingly, which
is why, as you have all noticed, Vince Price is such a natural fit here.
Duke is known, across this country and around the world, as the shining example of what
dreams and daring can bring forth.
Duke is one of the youngest and greatest universities of our nation and it is nimble, so keenly
aware of just how much can be accomplished in such little time.
Duke is ambitious, fostering creativity, innovation, and constantly inventing the new.
Duke is committed to knowledge in service to society, and to civic engagement across
communities large and small.
This focuses everyone on a shared determination to make a difference, to do things important,
in a word, to be great.
As must be evident, a truly great university, a truly great university, with great resources
and great ambitions, needs a great leader.
So, I take this golden opportunity to offer some thoughts on the Vince Price I know: The
Provost that Penn so greatly enjoyed, and the President that Duke so wisely employed.
When it comes to describing friends, I’ve often found that the family they grew up with
is a telling place to start.
That’s where we learn to care, to create, and to cope.
So I, for example, grew up an only child and I thrived.
All you need to know about Vince was that he grew up with no fewer than five brothers…and
he survived.
Is it any wonder then that he has a gift, a true gift, for staying cool under fire?
For fostering affinity out of difference?
And for skillfully navigating brawls among faculty—oops I meant, family?
With two sisters and loving parents as well–10 family members in all–Vince was
reared in big tent fashion, raised on teamwork and an all-hands-on-deck ethic.
There is simply no other way for a huge family to coexist peacefully.
There’s really no other way for an enormous university family to do so either, as Vince
amply demonstrated at Penn.
And I don’t think that’s merely coincidence.
Vince’s upbringing manifests in several aspects his personality and leadership, which
I’ve had the great pleasure of witnessing time and time again at Penn.
As you’ve already seen at Duke, Vince is quite capable of decisive action when extraordinary
occasion demands.
But his true modus operandi is deliberative.
He knows that while he may sit at the head of the family table, there are many other
equally essential seats.
He does not shout over other voices, but patiently and respectfully weaves them in.
He is far readier with warm praise than with hot rebukes, and so he inspires harder and
better work in others.
He is endlessly curious about the experiences of others and capacious in intellect.
He’s visionary with big plans, but he wants your help refining them and bringing them
to life.
And most of all, most of all, he understands that at the end of the day, the greatest accomplishment
is a house united, not divided.
They’re a funny thing, houses.
Especially houses with their own wonderful, peculiar histories.
Anybody who’s spent time with Vince knows he’s got a passion for home renovations.
Indeed, I'm told he’s quite handy with them.
After all my years as Penn’s president, I can tell you that Vince’s passion and
proficiency in this regard is excellent news for Duke.
Much like transforming an excellent house into an extraordinary one, a university president
is tasked with taking everything that makes an institution truly great and then raising
it to the next level.
And as all presidents must learn sooner rather than later, both successful universities and
successful home renovations have two things in common: Unexpected surprises… and large
amounts of fundraising.
So, Vince, rest assured, is masterful at dealing with both.
But there are some finer skills that may not be so immediately apparent of which he also
has mastery.
Building upon greatness, the greatness of Duke, demands it.
You must have an eye for preserving important details and unique heritage.
You must be sure that you are working from rock-solid foundations and be willing to fight
to preserve the features that work well and creatively change those that do not.
You must bring together the best teams of diverse experts.
And you must possess the vision and the gumption to dare to improve upon the old with the new.
For a strong University house, plumb and true, you need an academic leader of unparalleled
vision, with an appetite for bold action, who builds community and sparks innovation.
You need a Vince Price.
Truly, I tell you, you could not have made a better choice.
Vince, for you and for this incredible community, I don’t need a blueprint to show me how
this project's going to turn out.
It’s going to be amazing.
Congratulations and my very best to you all.
May Duke forever be plumb and True Blue.
Thank you.