
In a ceremony steeped in Carnegie Mellon pageantry, history and tradition,
Subra Suresh was officially installed as the university's ninth president on Friday, Nov 15, the 113th anniversary of the university's founding.
The ceremony opened with a performance by Tony Award-winner
Patina Miller (A'06). Several gave remarks welcoming Suresh to Carnegie Mellon, including
Allan Meltzer, the longest-standing faculty member at CMU, Faculty Senate Chair
Roberta Klatzky, Alumni Association President
Toni Ungaretti (MM'70), Staff Council Chair
John Lanyon and student representatives. English Professor
Jim Daniels read a special poem he wrote for the ceremony, titled "Rivers."
Keynote speaker
Eric Schmidt, executive chairman of Google, praised CMU as "a mythical place of achievement" where the field of computer science was created. He called CMU a center of innovation, problem-solving and wealth creation, and said Suresh's background provides "the perfect combination to lead us forward." He called Suresh "a great leader for a great institution."
In his inaugural address, President Suresh tied CMU's past with its future recognizing the presidents and scholars before him who shaped CMU's intellectual vitality, including the late
Herbert Simon, for whom CMU's recently announced Simon Initiative is named.
And he reflected on Carnegie Mellon's history of philanthropists including founder
Andrew Carnegie and
David Tepper (TPR'82), whose most recent gift of $67 million will help build a new home for the Tepper School and the David A. Tepper Quadrangle (see story below).
President Suresh compared his life's journey to Carnegie's, but he had a different take on Carnegie's words, which became the university's motto. "My work is from the heart," Suresh said.
Watch the investiture ceremony. Read more and see photos from the event.