CHAPEL HILL (Dec. 11, 2015) – With dignity and grace, University of North Carolina President Tom Ross said farewell to the same board that removed him, urging its members to strengthen the University.

“Without question, leading one of the nation’s top public universities, the University of North Carolina, has been a true highlight in my career and life,” Ross told the University’s Board of Governors.

“Whatever lies ahead, I urge you to never permit – never permit – this magnificent state asset, this treasure that truly belongs to the people of North Carolina, to be diminished.”

Ross was asked by the board in January to leave by the end of 2015.  He said he felt privileged to follow in the tradition of previous system presidents William Friday, Dick Spangler, Molly Broad and Erskine Bowles – and before them, William Aycock, Dick Phillips and Frank Porter Graham.

He said the University is now confronting the challenges of a very different future for its administrators, faculty and 226,000 students.  He noted that the university has broadened access with online course offerings, easier transfers of community-college credits and outreach to military veterans.  And he said he is particularly proud of the system’s chancellors, 11 of whom he selected.

Ross noted that an economic-impact study released this year found the University system pumps $28 billion a year into the state’s economy.

“UNC is a critical part of the talent production and the key economic driver for our state’s economy and represents more than 6 percent of the entire state’s GDP,” he said.

A University with 17 campuses that vary widely in mission, size and history is greater than the sum of its parts, Ross said.

“Despite the financial constraints and other challenges we faced in recent years, the UNC system today is strong – and well-positioned for an even greater future,” he said.

Ross noted that faculty attracted nearly $1.4 billion in external funds for research last year.  More than just a money-maker, the research has generated more than 22,000 jobs and 100 start-up companies and is an integral part of teaching students, he said.

While 12 campuses reported increases in research funds, Ross noted that UNC-Chapel Hill now ranks 6^th in the nation in federal research and development dollars and 8^th in total R&D spending.  It is the second year in a row UNC-Chapel Hill has ranked in the top 10 among both public and private institutions.

“This most recent success is a direct result of the University’s ability to leverage state dollars and private support and other resources to attract competitive federal grant funding,” he said.

“The research dollars that our universities bring into our state give us a true competitive advantage nationally and internationally.  This is a fact that each of us need to remember.”

Ross reminded Board members that they have a solemn responsibility to “preserve, strengthen and advocate for” the University.

“I urge you to do what is right – to do what is best for the university – no matter the consequences,” he said.  “Our students, parents and alumni, our state’s leaders and the people of North Carolina demand no less and deserve no less.”

Despite the controversy surrounding his removal, Ross said he has no regrets about taking the job as President.  “I do not look back and ask what might have been,” he said.

He said former U.S. education secretary Margaret Spellings, who will succeed him as President on March 1, deserves unconditional support from University staff, chancellors and the Board of Governors.

“I simply cannot express my gratitude and deep appreciation for the honor and privilege of serving as the fifth president of the University of North Carolina – the finest public university in America,” Ross said.

And with that, the same board that showed Tom Ross the door gave him a standing ovation.