Peter Likins University President

President didn't see news in decision to retire

It's been one week since the Tucson newspapers caught University of Arizona President Pete Likins off guard by announcing before he did that he will retire in three years.

"It just never occurred to me that anyone would regard as newsworthy my decision to retire at age 70," Likins stated in an e-mail he sent to the university community July 23.

Although Likins said he was surprised that the media focused on his retirement instead of his latest Focused Excellence developments, other top administrators were not so surprised.

"It's a good administrative move, a proper position for any administrator to take," said Senior Vice President of Business Affairs Joel Valdez.

Valdez said it is too early to tell what legacy Likins will leave at the UA, but that he knows he will leave the school in a stable state.

Provost George Davis said Likins was thinking carefully and thoughtfully about the university when he decided to stay with the school for another three years.

"He was trying to position himself and the organization to allow for really a productive period," Davis said.

"Any time a university undergoes a change in leadership it is always a challenge. That's where the board of regents comes in," he added.

Davis called the existing board of regents "strong and effective" and said it will "bode well for a smooth transition into the future."

In his time at the UA Likins has piloted the institution through sweatshop scandals, an ongoing loss of top faculty, a series of budget cuts, the largest tuition increase in the school's history and the beginning of his vision for the school, Focused Excellence.

"Although the year just past was the most challenging in my professional life, I believe that it was also the most rewarding," Likins said in his e-mail. "I feel inspired by hard-won successes achieved in very difficult circumstances, and I am determined to achieve key objective in our Focused Excellence strategy during my final three years."

When Likins met with the Tucson Newspaper editorial board last week, it was to discuss his latest changes under Focused Excellence, which will restructure the top tier of the university's administration.

He mentioned then that he had signed a contract last spring for three more years as president.

Likins came to the UA in 1997 from Lehigh University, where he was also president.

"When you look around the country, you see very few individuals who have served with such strength and vigor and wisdom for that period of time," Davis said.

"I know he's a wonderful person to work for, a real genius," Valdez said. "But we all, as administrators, have to take a look at the long-term view."