Philip DiStefano on Tuesday announced his retirement as chancellor of the University of Colorado Boulder after spending nearly 15 years in the role and 50 years on campus.

“It has been such a rewarding and humbling experience to serve as chancellor of Colorado’s flagship university for the past 15 years,” DiStefano said during his State of the Campus speech Tuesday. “I am so proud of our faculty, staff and students and all that you have accomplished, and I also will treasure the many alumni, donors, parents and friends of the university I was lucky enough to meet.”

DiStefano plans to remain in the role of chancellor until his replacement is found. A national search is planned. He will stay on after his replacement takes over as a faculty member at CU’s School of Education, where he first began his CU Boulder career in 1974.

Perhaps the most touching moment during his announcement came when DiStefano, his voice wavering and his eyes welling, thanked his family for supporting him even though it meant missing birthdays, anniversaries and holidays because of his commitments to the university.

DiStefano received a standing ovation after the announcement.

“As we move into our next chapter as a university there will continue to be naysayers across the nation who claim higher education is failing,” DiStefano continued, citing studies that show confidence is declining even among college graduates that college is a wise investment.

He urged the students and faculty to “fight fiction with facts,” that a college education is the “single best investment” a person can make for themselves, their children and their grandchildren.

“Let’s show that it’s still true by focusing on student success, and all that it entails,” DiStefano said. “Not simply for our own job security or to stay in business as a university but because student success means communities thrive, the nation is revitalized and our world is restored.”

In 2024 DiStefano will serve in a role in which he engages with major donors and highly-engaged alumni, while also supporting the transition of the new campus chancellor, according to an email CU President Todd Saliman sent campus-wide Tuesday.

His primary duties starting in fall 2024 will include serving as the Senior Executive Director at the Center for Leadership and the Quigg and Virginia S. Newton Endowed Chair in Leadership, the university said.

Gov. Jared Polis sent out a press release thanking DiStefano.

“I thank Chancellor Phil DiStefano for his decades of service to Colorado and our students and we are thrilled he is staying on as a faculty member to help educate the next generation of students,” Polis said.

Saliman, who will lead the search for the university’s next chancellor, in his campus-wide email expressed his gratitude for DiSefano’s decades of service.

“For 50 years, Phil has been devoted to CU Boulder. His commitment has been exemplary, positively impacting the lives of thousands of students, faculty and staff,” Saliman wrote. “He has spearheaded many wonderful initiatives through the years.”

Over the course of the last half century, DiStefano has served as a faculty member, dean, associate vice chancellor, provost and chancellor.

“The post of chancellor at CU Boulder has never seen anyone serve as long of a tenure as Phil’s,” Saliman wrote. “He has seen CU Boulder through some of the most tumultuous and challenging periods the university has ever faced.”

Not only did DiStefano help navigate CU Boulder through the uncertainty of COVID-19 and the Great Recession of 2008, but his tenure also saw the university gain global recognition for its academic and research programs.

“Whether it’s the sciences, arts, business, engineering, or the many examples that could be listed, Phil has his fingerprints on much of it,” Saliman wrote.

Beyond academics, DiStefano was instrumental in making the CU Boulder campus a vibrant place, Saliman said, including his commitment to the success of student-athletes.

DiStefano began his State of the Campus address acknowledging the excitement that the CU Buffs football program had brought to Boulder, and the head coach Deion Sanders on Tuesday had some kind words for the outgoing chancellor as well.

“He did some wonderful things here, even changing some things so our athletes could get in and then they proved themselves that they should’ve been in,” Sanders sad. “He is a wonderful human being, always greets me with a smile and a hug. He’s gonna be missed. I have much admiration, much love, much respect. He’s a legend to me because he embraced us with open arms and made it possible to do some of the things that we’re doing. Hats off and God bless him.”

DiStefano was on the hiring committee that approved the “Coach Prime” hire.

He told students and faculty that he hoped they would remember one key point from his State of the Campus address Tuesday.

“The responsibility for student success belongs with every single one of us, and I am proud to be standing here today leading this crucial effort,” DiStefano said. “I’m confident that this university is in an excellent position to continue making meaningful progress on student success thanks to all of you.”

Denver Gazette sports reporter Tyler King contributed to this report.