John Casteen, the president of the University of Virginia, just happens to be one the biggest fans you will find anywhere of Virginia’s Community Colleges.

With his leadership, UVa became one of the first universities to sign a guaranteed transfer agreement with Virginia’s Community Colleges.

And with his partnership, unique opportunities have been created between UVa and some of our colleges like that which allows engineering students to earn a four-year degree without having to leave Lynchburg.

Mr. Casteen revealed some of his reasoning for his university’s multifaceted partnerships with Virginia’s Community Colleges when he recently served as the keynote speaker for the Fourth Annual Chancellor’s Award for Leadership in Philanthropy - an event hosted by the Virginia Foundation for Community College Education (VFCCE).

Mr. Casteen linked community colleges to Thomas Jefferson’s ideals of universal education, provided at the common expense. “The need for effective community colleges is just as great today as it was 40-plus years ago when the VCCS was created, or 200-plus years ago when Jefferson first dreamed of a statewide system of education,” Casteen says, adding that community college play an important role in the current economic downturn, and will play a key role in the workforce development and education that will keep the recovery moving forward.

Press play below to hear Mr. Casteen’s entire speech.