The local media are in shock that the chancellor of Denver University, Dan Ritchie, has decided to resign.
Ritchie and I are probably as far apart politically as is possible, but I've always respected the man.
I first met him while trying to negotiate a merger between Group W Broadcasting and NBC while I was with GE. We came close, but couldn't quite get there.
His tenure at DU has been extraordinary, raising hundreds of millions to give the campus a world-class infrastructure and a highly competitive endowment.
The chancellor, who has forgone any pay, sold his beloved Colorado ranch to help revive the struggling university.
That 'beloved' ranch was worth $65 million ....
I questioned his appointment of Marc Holtzman as President a couple of years ago, after Owens tried to shove Holtzman into the Presidency at CSU -- my sense has always been that Holtzman isn't the real deal, just a smooth operator whose failed upward frequently (total waste as Owen's technology biz dev guy), and adopted as a project by older men in power from time to time.
I've had more personal reasons to like the Chancellor the last few years, as my kids go to school at the Ricks Center, an elementary school on the DU campus. Ritchie has always supported the schools' innovative approach, which has given it the base it needed to become a great success.
And I've always found his excitement for the place infectious, whether introducing John Glenn at an event he orchestrated with Al Yates to get a dialogue going about our futures post 9/11, or chatting with my son and I rink-side at a DU hockey game.
He says he'll focus on fund-raising and strategy, which will still be vital for the institution. I hope they'll find someone world-class in his stead...
