Office of the Chancellor The University of Texas System 601 Colorado Street, 4th Floor Austin, Texas 78701
Dear Chancellor Cigarroa:
The University of Texas at Austin is our home. It is here on the 40 Acres that we achieve the inconceivable, pursue the unattainable, and imagine the impossible. As students, our home is precious and intertwined with the most important years of our lives. Being a Texas Longhorn is not just a matter of pride; it is a symbol of courage in the face of the unknown the same ideal that led to the founding of our great state and this treasured and revered University of the first class. Throughout the past few years, the students at the University of Texas at Austin have witnessed a great clash surrounding the principles of higher education and the core purpose of this University. This struggle revolves around the University of Texas System and the University of Texas at Austin, which appear to be at odds regarding the future of Texas higher education. This University has flourished under the leadership of President Bill Powers, who has established this University as both the premier research institution of this state and an academically reputed flagship state university. Despite the University of Texas at Austins successes, the ongoing struggle has disrupted and even harmed the University over the past three years, with only the potential for a disastrous end. The abrupt removal of the Universitys leadership in President Powers does a disservice to the status of higher education in Texas and has uncertain implications for the future of the University of Texas. As this ordeal plays out in the public eye, the esteem and probity of both the University of Texas at Austin and University of Texas System have been damaged. As Chancellor of the University of Texas System, we understand that your station requires a great deal of compromise and sacrifice. We appreciate your service to the University of Texas System, the University of Texas at Austin and the state of Texas in face of difficult resolution. As the steward of the University of Texas, we believe that your first and foremost priority is to serve the purpose of higher education in this state. I ask that on behalf of all students, for the good of higher education in this state, and for your love of academia at large, that you, Chancellor Cigarroa, and the Board of Regents, do what is best for the University of Texas at Austin.
Sincerely,
Kornel Rady University of Texas Student Body President 2014-2015
CC: The Honorable Rick Perry, Governor of Texas The Honorable David Dewhurst, Leutenant Governor of Texas The Honorable Joe Straus, Speaker of the House The Honorable Carol Alvarado, Co-Chair, House Committee on Transparency in State Operations The Honorable Dan Flynn, Co-Chair, House Committee on Transparency in State Agency Operations The Honorable Kel Seliger, Chair, Senate Committee on Higher Education The Honorable Dan Branch, Chair, House Committee on Higher Education Mr. Paul L. Foster, Chair, University of Texas System Board of Regents Mr. William Powers, Jr., President of the University of Texas at Austin