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1999 SESSION


SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 50
Commending Dr. Ronald E. Carrier and Edith J. Carrier.

Agreed to by the Senate, February 4, 1999

WHEREAS, Dr. Ronald E. Carrier retired in September 1998 as president of James Madison University, ending an outstanding 27-year career; and

WHEREAS, in 1971 Dr. Carrier was the youngest college president in the Commonwealth, and when he retired, he was the senior college president in Virginia, and his longevity as president was exceeded by only three other senior public college or university presidents in America; and

WHEREAS, Dr. Carrier’s administration at James Madison University marked an incredible era of growth and progress, as the institution changed from Madison College, a teachers’ school with an enrollment of 4,000, to a nationally acclaimed comprehensive university with 14,000 students; and

WHEREAS, during Dr. Carrier’s presidency, more than $120 million in construction took place on the JMU campus, the size of the faculty and student body tripled, annual applications for admission skyrocketed from 3,800 to more than 15,000, a balance in the male/female ratio of students was reached, an enormous increase in minority enrollment occurred, and academic accomplishments by both faculty and students expanded tremendously; and

WHEREAS, while he was leading James Madison University through this amazing metamorphosis, Dr. Carrier also contributed his personal skills and expertise to a variety of special projects for eight Virginia Governors, including a year’s leave of absence from JMU to serve as president of the Center for Innovative Technology; and

WHEREAS, Dr. Carrier, with a keen sense of humor and a gregarious nature to accompany his professional acumen, earned the respect and admiration of members of the General Assembly for nearly three decades; and

WHEREAS, Dr. Carrier’s wife, Edith J. Carrier, ably assisted him in the multiple challenges of leading a great university by serving with charm, elegance, affability, and graciousness for more than 27 years as First Lady of James Madison University; and

WHEREAS, Edith Carrier was tireless in support of her husband and the university, organizing literally hundreds of receptions, dinners, and other social events at the JMU President’s Home for students, alumni, parents of students, faculty, staff, members of the board of visitors, legislators, community leaders, donors, potential donors, and other friends of the university; and

WHEREAS, Edith Carrier brought an unmatched sense of warmth and hospitality to functions in the President’s Home at JMU, making her the exemplar for college and university first ladies in the Commonwealth; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the Senate, That Dr. Ronald E. Carrier and Edith J. Carrier be commended for their enormous contributions in changing James Madison University into one of America’s finest institutions of higher learning and for their many contributions to the betterment of the Commonwealth; and, be it

RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the Senate prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to Dr. Ronald E. Carrier and Edith J. Carrier in recognition of their great achievements.