CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – University of Virginia President Teresa A. Sullivan, the first woman to lead U.Va., will resign in a mutual parting announced Sunday.
Sullivan will step down Aug. 15, two years after she succeeded John Casteen, who retired after 20 years as head of the university founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson. She is U.Va.’s eighth president.
“It’s been a great honor to serve as president of the University of Virginia,” Sullivan said in a statement. “Although the board and I have a philosophical difference of opinion, I will always treasure having had the opportunity to work with so many gifted faculty and staff, talented students and loyal alumni. I am also grateful for the privilege to have worked with our extraordinary vice presidents and deans.”
Rector Helen E. Dragas said the board had discussions over the past year with Sullivan about the importance of developing, articulating and acting on a clear strategic vision.
“In a rapidly changing and highly pressurized external environment in both health care and in academia,” Dragas said, “we believe that the university needs to remain at the forefront of change.”
The board said it would move swiftly to name an interim president and begin the search for a new leader.
Before coming to Charlottesville, Sullivan served a four-year term as provost of the University of Michigan, and prior to that held several administrative and academic positions at the University of Texas.
