0:00:12.169,0:00:14.629
I have to say we're

0:00:14.629,0:00:17.650
overwhelmed with the warmth

0:00:17.650,0:00:18.750
and

0:00:18.750,0:00:22.339
support we felt over these last days

0:00:22.339,0:00:24.830
we recognize that

0:00:24.830,0:00:29.990
we are going to be part of a precious legacy
that we have got to

0:00:29.990,0:00:34.950
preserve and work to hand off to another generation

0:00:34.950,0:00:37.890
it's been a powerful couple days

0:00:37.890,0:00:41.740
on sunday when we received the decision

0:00:41.740,0:00:43.890
by the board of trustees..

0:00:43.890,0:00:50.890
I shed tears of joy..IÕm going to start
Crying now, I have to stop..

0:00:53.290,0:00:58.820
Mary Lynne and I were walking around the Great American
Ballpark, the game was about to start

0:00:58.820,0:01:02.119
I had on my jogging shoes, blue jeans and a

0:01:02.119,0:01:03.650
Keeneland t-shirt

0:01:03.650,0:01:06.720
and I got a phone call from Britt Brockman

0:01:06.720,0:01:08.440
asking me if

0:01:08.440,0:01:13.930
i would accept an offer to be the 12th president
of the University of Kentucky

0:01:13.930,0:01:19.360
and that they wanted to call the governor
and make an announcement in fifteen minutes

0:01:19.360,0:01:22.580
and they were going to send a car for me

0:01:22.580,0:01:25.750
uh... so that I could come over and

0:01:25.750,0:01:29.800
meet the Board and then have a press conference

0:01:29.800,0:01:35.140
when he received the call and I could 
hear the one side of the conversation

0:01:35.140,0:01:37.430
I started

0:01:37.430,0:01:42.910
crying, I mean I welled up with tears, they
were tears of joy, pure joy.  But

0:01:42.910,0:01:44.900
after sunday

0:01:44.900,0:01:48.450
my uh... tears have been replaced just by smiles

0:01:48.450,0:01:52.930
smiles on my face, I canÕt quit smiling i mean
every.. it just keeps getting better and

0:01:52.930,0:01:55.610
better with each person we meet

0:01:55.610,0:01:58.830
and IÕm smiling in my heart also

0:01:58.830,0:02:04.409
two different people have described Lexington as,
one as the uh... Emerald City from the Wizard

0:02:04.409,0:02:05.680
of Oz,

0:02:05.680,0:02:08.549
and another person as Mayberry

0:02:08.549,0:02:13.939
and you know those were my two favorite,
my favorite move and one of my favorite tv shows

0:02:13.939,0:02:15.399
as a kid,

0:02:15.399,0:02:18.409
so I couldnÕt be in a happier place

0:02:18.409,0:02:19.920
Well, Mary Lynne and I,

0:02:19.920,0:02:21.109
when we

0:02:21.109,0:02:23.709
visited campus

0:02:23.709,0:02:27.549
and no one knew who we were and why we were
here

0:02:27.549,0:02:30.409
were first struck by students

0:02:30.409,0:02:34.559
Mary Lynne went into the visitor center, I didn't
go in because it

0:02:34.559,0:02:40.449
had a sign that said ÒOffice of the ProvostÓ
and ÒOffice of the PresidentÓ, and I decided that

0:02:40.449,0:02:45.409
I didnÕt want to have some early introductions there
that I wasn't expecting

0:02:45.409,0:02:46.939
and uh...

0:02:46.939,0:02:52.069
didnÕt know that ever be back on campus again,
so I sent Mary Lynne in, and she came out and

0:02:52.069,0:02:54.099
told me the story about

0:02:54.099,0:02:55.989
the young lady who

0:02:55.989,0:02:57.539
greeted her

0:02:57.539,0:03:03.149
and shared with her her excitement about the
honors program she is participating in.

0:03:03.149,0:03:04.919
I think that,

0:03:04.919,0:03:08.559
we also just noticed as we walked through campus

0:03:08.559,0:03:10.619
the warmth and friendliness

0:03:10.619,0:03:14.339
and I think one of the most powerful moments
for us though is

0:03:14.339,0:03:17.429
when we went to the Young Library

0:03:17.429,0:03:22.589
and when we saw students congregating
on that ground floor

0:03:22.589,0:03:24.909
and pulling whiteboards together

0:03:24.909,0:03:26.590
talking about the

0:03:26.590,0:03:28.809
issues of our day

0:03:28.809,0:03:31.099
Mary Lynne turned to me when we left,

0:03:31.099,0:03:33.759
we were almost speechless, and said

0:03:33.759,0:03:38.859
ÒThis is a sanctuary of learningÓ.. when you come
on a campus

0:03:38.859,0:03:42.709
and a library is the signature of building

0:03:42.709,0:03:44.739
it says a lot about the

0:03:44.739,0:03:46.909
values of a university

0:03:46.909,0:03:50.689
and when you read the story of how it all
happened,

0:03:50.689,0:03:53.189
you also were struck by the

0:03:53.189,0:03:55.599
generosity of those who

0:03:55.599,0:03:59.199
benefited here from an excellent education

0:03:59.199,0:04:01.919
and how much it means for them to give back

0:04:01.919,0:04:04.579
for the next generation

0:04:04.579,0:04:08.149
this is a second time we've stayed at the Hyatt
hotel

0:04:08.149,0:04:12.379
the first time we got there that was the first
thing we tried to do is look in Rupp Arena,

0:04:12.379,0:04:16.989
(Mary Lynne: Òthe very first thingÓ) that's right but you
know they have that thing locked down (Òsealed tightÓ)

0:04:16.989,0:04:20.679
and then they told me they don't have the court
down, and so forth,

0:04:20.679,0:04:27.559
so we decided we donÕt want to see it until,
(ÒitÕs the real thingÓ) until itÕs full of the Blue Nation.

0:04:27.559,0:04:30.229
ThatÕs what we decided.

0:04:30.229,0:04:32.709
I hoped that when we're finished

0:04:32.709,0:04:35.690
we will have made a difference

0:04:35.690,0:04:37.689
and that is

0:04:37.689,0:04:41.569
worked as a team with the faculty and staff

0:04:41.569,0:04:43.530
to be certain that

0:04:43.530,0:04:46.340
the students that graduate

0:04:46.340,0:04:49.009
have a quality education

0:04:49.009,0:04:53.610
and they're prepared for a rich life of
meaning and purpose

0:04:53.610,0:04:57.710
and there's uncertainty out there for this
next generation about

0:04:57.710,0:05:00.639
what their lives and careers are going to
look like

0:05:00.639,0:05:03.099
and to best prepare them for that

0:05:03.099,0:05:06.620
and have people acknowledge that that's what
we've done

0:05:06.620,0:05:09.599
would be a terrific achievement

0:05:09.599,0:05:13.900
and we want more and more people have access
to a wonderful

0:05:13.900,0:05:18.080
university also access to a degree..

0:05:18.080,0:05:22.599
we're not successful until they complete their
studies here

0:05:22.599,0:05:28.069
i'd also want the work that we do
on the issues of our day

0:05:28.069,0:05:31.740
from energy to health disparities, whatever

0:05:31.740,0:05:32.570
and that

0:05:32.570,0:05:35.520
our faculty and students

0:05:35.520,0:05:38.169
make contributions

0:05:38.169,0:05:39.830
to solving those

0:05:39.830,0:05:43.580
problems that we're going to face as a country
for a good while.

0:05:43.580,0:05:45.680
So those discoveries

0:05:45.680,0:05:47.419
that are being manifest

0:05:47.419,0:05:50.020
in ways that a beneficial to

0:05:50.020,0:05:51.539
our citizens would be

0:05:51.539,0:05:53.259
another achievement IÕd hope
to point to.