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50 years after first arriving at CU Boulder, Philip DiStefano reflects on a long career in higher education

By Paolo Zialcita:

In 1974, Philip DiStefano walked through the doors of the University of Colorado Boulder’s School of Education as an assistant professor. What followed was a 50-year tenure at Colorado’s flagship university in multiple roles, including the chancellorship, the position DiStefano is preparing to vacate this summer. 

Over the last 15 years of DiStefano’s tenure as chancellor, he has navigated the university through numerous challenges, including higher education funding and the response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Many of those challenges he faced will be inherited by his incoming successor, Justin Schwartz.

“Higher education, as you know, is under fire nationally, and the value of higher education is being questioned,” he told CPR News.

Colorado Matters sat down with DiStefano at CU’s Lucille Buchanan Building, which is where his office was located when he first joined CU 50 years ago. There, he reflected on how higher education has changed during his long career and challenges his successor will have to navigate. 

Read the rest of the article in CPR News.