President David C. Hardesty Jr. presented his State of the University message on Capitol Hill at a March 24 luncheon sponsored by the National Capital Area Chapter of the WVU Alumni Association.

Members of West Virginia's congressional delegation and their staffs, along with alumni and key research and industry partners, were on hand.

Hardesty was introduced at the event in the Russell Senate Office Building by Senator Robert C. Byrd, who reflected on WVU's role as West Virginia's flagship land-grant research university.

"WVU, with its thirteen colleges and schools, is a jewel, giving over 20,000 students from all over West Virginia, the nation, and the world the opportunity to gain a top-notch education to prepare for today's fast-paced, global economy," Byrd remarked.

"I have had a very productive partnership with WVU over the years, and this partnership has continued and flourished with President Hardesty at the helm of the University," Byrd said. "[Hardesty] has recognized opportunities presented by my efforts to target federal resources into West Virginia and has leveraged further benefits for our state, producing tangible results."

The senator cited WVU's partnerships with the FBI Criminal Justice Information Services Division in Clarksburg, the NASA Independent Verification and Validation Project in Fairmont, and, through the WVU Robert C. Byrd Health Sciences Center, the state's health-care providers.

"I am glad to see that WVU, under President Hardesty's direction, is continuing to work cooperatively . . . so that more West Virginians can benefit from the high-technology industrial base I have worked so hard to foster in our state," Byrd said.

"I am proud that WVU's Health Sciences Center bears my name. This outstanding medical facility is addressing one of my key concerns over the years, that is, seeing to it that West Virginia's primarily rural population has access to basic health services."

Senator Byrd also commended the Aquaculture Food and Marketing Development Project in the College of Agriculture, Forestry, and Consumer Sciences, the WVU-based National Research Center for Coal and Energy, and the WVUp All Night Program that provides healthful leisure-time alternatives for students.

"Our state is fortunate to have a University that works to benefit all of its citizens," Byrd said. "WVU has demonstrated the drive and commitment to ensure that our state will reap the full benefit of the seeds that we are sowing, and I am deeply appreciative of the inspired work and the strong, steady leadership of David Hardesty."

Hardesty told those assembled that "the contributions of our congressional delegation are unparalleled in the nation," and expressed his thanks to them "for believing in your state's flagship university."