University of Virginia president to step down in 2010

University of Virginia President John T. Casteen III announced Friday afternoon that he will step down Aug. 1, 2010.

Casteen, 65, has led the university since 1990. He will retire from the post at the conclusion of his 20th year in the job.

“These years have been all but magical for my family and me,“ Casteen said in a statement. “We have had the pleasure of living and working among students, staff members, faculty members, alumni, other backers of the University, and the women and men of a community that we see as America’s best. These have been years of working with legislators, board members, and others who care about the roles of universities in promoting and sustaining the common good, and of imagining with them how to cultivate a University capable of making Virginia’s and the Republic’s future worthy of their past.“

Casteen had been widely expected to retire in 2011, following the conclusion of UVa’s five-year $3 billion fundraising campaign that aims to propel the university into the top-tier of private colleges and universities.

Casteen, who earned three degrees in English from UVa, is among the longest serving college presidents in the country and is viewed as a leader on higher education issues.

A search for Casteen’s successor will get under way toward the end of next month.