Friday, April 22, 2022

Seven years after he was officially announced as the sixth chancellor and ninth leader of the University of North Carolina Wilmington, Jose V. Sartarelli’s legacy is formally cemented with the naming of Sartarelli Hall.

The UNCW Board of Trustees renamed the building formerly known as Osprey Hall to honor his contributions as chancellor. The announcement was made at the site on April 22 in front of a gathering of faculty, staff, students and trustees. Chancellor Sartarelli is set to retire on June 30.

“Thank you for helping make UNCW what it is today,” said BOT chair Gidget Kidd '91. “In honor of all we have accomplished together and in honor of your leadership on behalf of the Board of Trustees, we officially dedicate this building as Sartarelli Hall.”

Sartarelli’s journey from a young boy studying by a kerosene lamp in Brazil to a leader of a nationally ranked American university is remarkable. He has lived in Venezuela, Chile, Brazil, Singapore and throughout the United States. Prior to taking the helm at UNCW, he served as West Virginia University’s chief global officer and Milan Puskar Dean of the College of Business and Economics. He spent three decades in international marketing and management with three global pharmaceutical companies – Eli Lilly and Company, Bristol Myers Squibb and Johnson & Johnson.

During his tenure at UNCW, Sartarelli steered the university through extraordinary growth. Some of his noted accomplishments include:

• UNCW’s expanding student body resulted in the largest volume of enrollment growth in the UNC System – $74 million over a six-year period.
• Provided strategic support for research and scholarly activities, which earned UNCW the elevated designation of “Doctoral Universities: High Research Activity” – R2 institution – by the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education in 2018.
• Received approval for 20 new degrees.
• Provided strategic leadership during the aftermath of Hurricanes Florence and Dorian and throughout the COVID-19 global pandemic.
• Enhanced support for diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives.
• Launched Like No Other: The Campaign for UNCW.
• Guided UNCW as the university earned recognition as one of the top 100 public universities in the country.
• Transformed campus through new construction and renovation.

“To have the Sartarelli name on a building along Chancellor’s Walk means so much to my wife Kathy and me. UNCW is a part of our existence,” he said. “I want to thank Chair Gidget Kidd and the Board of Trustees for this remarkable honor. I also want to thank UNCW’s students, faculty and staff. I would not be standing here today without you. While my time as your chancellor is coming to a close, my heartfelt commitment to UNCW will never end.”

 -- Caroline Cropp