Why have you chosen to retire at the end of 2008? Is it related to the conclusion of the Johns Hopkins: Knowledge for the World campaign, which closes on Dec. 31?
"Twelve years is a great run, and stepping down at the completion of my second campaign will allow the trustees to recruit a highly talented and able leader who will take Johns Hopkins to the next level."

What will you do after you step down?
"In the words of Harry Truman, 'Unpack my suitcases.' Seriously, we will live in Baltimore while I take some time to recharge my batteries and complete several book projects just under way. I also hope to continue to speak out on those things that matter to America, especially our national competitiveness on education, research and health care."

What do you think of as the key accomplishments of your presidency?
"When I started as president in 1996, Wendy and I made building a better sense of community among all of us at Johns Hopkins a top priority. I wanted to focus on the undergraduate experience. I wanted to make real and significant progress on ensuring that our campuses are diverse and inclusive. I wanted to reposition Johns Hopkins
Medicine with a new governance structure so that it could continue to provide excellent, compassionate service to the sick in an era of managed care.

"I hope and believe that we have made great strides in all these areas. I hope and believe that, together, we have enhanced Johns Hopkins' ability to teach and to mentor, to discover and to heal, and to share the gift of knowledge with the world."

How do you assess the strength of Johns Hopkins as an institution relative to when you became president in 1996?
"I think by all measures – the quality of the students, faculty and staff; the breadth and depth of faculty programs; the renewal and expansion of facilities; the growth of the endowment and accomplishments in fund raising – Johns Hopkins is doing extraordinarily well. I have been pleased to be at the helm during this time of perhaps unprecedented growth of the university, made possible by the extraordinary efforts of our faculty and staff and the magnificently generous support of our alumni, trustees and friends in the public and private sectors."

What has your wife Wendy's role been in your work and in the life of the university?
"She has been my true partner at Johns Hopkins. She has done so much in so many ways to better unite the university with those it serves. She has worked tirelessly with the Johns Hopkins Women's Club to renew the library at the Barclay School, helped to spread the Experience Corps model in the public schools and connected Johns Hopkins and the Walters Art Museum with innovative new programs. She founded the Friends of the Peabody to invite the Baltimore community to experience the outstanding musical talent at our wonderful conservatory. And, of course, she has been the gracious hostess of innumerable events at our home on the Homewood campus. I cannot say how grateful I am to her."

There have been moments of great tragedy and moments of great joy during your presidency, haven't there?
"The killings of undergraduates Chris Elser and Linda Trinh and the death of staff member and research volunteer Ellen Roche are stamped indelibly in my mind. I will forever recall the memory of these wonderful members of the Johns Hopkins community, as will all those who were at the university at the time of their deaths. These were certainly the lowest of the low times for me.

"The thrill of winning the 2005 national championship in lacrosse was perhaps most significant because a little over a year earlier, some in the NCAA had attempted to eliminate the multidivisional exemption that allows us to play in Division I in lacrosse. Many people at Johns Hopkins had worked with me to defeat that movement. Equally rewarding in our victory was the knowledge that Coach Pietramala had recruited and mentored a group of student athletes whose behavior in the classroom and off the field provides an exemplary model for all our students."

What are some of your happiest memories of being president?
"Students are the lifeblood of any university and the future of the world and certainly Johns Hopkins students are the best of the best. I love teaching. Certainly, interacting with 20 undergraduate students in my seminar 'Uncommon Sense' provides a lot of psychic energy to keep me engaged. Attending student events, hearing their stories, their travails and their successes is a learning experience for me.

"Seeing the passion and the compassion with which all of our divisions work to make the world a better place gives me great pride in the commitment of the Johns Hopkins faculty and staff to their work."