Gov. Nathan Deal endorsed Jere Morehead to be the University of Georgia's next president partly because he is willing to look increasingly beyond the state for funding. And at his formal installation on Tuesday Morehead did his best to validate that decision.
Morehead, 56, a former professor, actually took office as president in July, but the ceremony gave him the chance to outline his priorities for Georgia's flagship institution. He announced a fundraising campaign that would break school records, but was careful to strike a chord of fiscal conservatism throughout his message.
“This new normal requires us to be more prudent and careful with our resources,” Morehead said. “I pledge the university will spend carefully and wisely and thoughtfully and allocate its resources properly.”
Deal made it clear that he had the final say on Morehead’s appointment by the state Board of Regents. The governor recounted how Morehead wowed him during one of the final interviews for the position in which he expressed his willingness to work with other schools, private companies and outside groups to raise money and train students.
“We will continue to see this collaboration to expand the reach of this institution and encourage funding and research and development,” Deal said at Tuesday’s ceremony.
Next year's legislative session will be an early test for Morehead as he pushes to expand UGA's role in economic development and broaden the university's public health and engineering programs. But Tuesday he was simply enjoying the moment.
“What we do here matters,” Morehead said. “It’s important. And not just to the students, faculty and staff. It’s important to the citizens of Georgia. We have the rare privilege of working on things that matter. Work that resonates through generations.”
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