CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA (CVILLE RIGHT NOW) – Former University of Virginia President Jim Ryan accepted the Legend in Leadership Award on Tuesday at the Yale Higher Education Leadership Summit at the Yale School of Management in New Haven, Conn., the school announced.

Ryan, a Yale graduate who went on to become the dean of Harvard’s school of education, then president at UVA, was ousted over the summer under political pressure from the Trump administration. Yale hailed his accomplishments as a scholar of both constitutional law and educational equity.

“We are honored to celebrate President James Ryan, a visionary leader who has embodied the ideal of a university that is both ‘great and good,'” said summit organizer Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, in a statement. “A first-generation college student who graduated summa cum laude from Yale and was first in his class at the University of Virginia (UVA) School of Law, President Ryan has dedicated his career to expanding access to educational opportunity.”

The award was presented by a group of former university presidents, including Maurie McInnis, Yale’s 24th president, Peter Salovey, Yale’s 23rd president, Valerie Smith, Swarthmore College’s 15th president, and Phil Hanlon, Dartmouth University’s 18th president.

Yale’s announcement praised Ryan for making a UVA education more accessible and affordable for low-income families, for developing scholarships and facilities at the school, and for his leadership of the university during the COVID-19 pandemic.

It also saluted Ryan’s final act as UVA’s president.

“Perhaps most strikingly, President Ryan’s principled decision to resign rather than expose the university community to potential loss of federal funding, research grants, and student financial aid demonstrated what it truly means to put institutional welfare above personal position,” Sonnenfeld’s statement said. “As U.S. Senator Tim Kaine (D-VA) observed, the circumstances represented an unacceptable level of federal overreach into Virginia’s higher education. President Ryan’s selfless leadership sparked a groundswell of support, with faculty, students, and state leaders rallying behind his vision. He leaves UVA having implemented nearly all goals from its strategic plan well ahead of the 2030 target date, a testament to his extraordinary effectiveness as an institution-builder and his enduring commitment to the common good.”

Ryan stepped down from the UVA post in June, when the Department of Justice was investigating UVA for failing to fully comply with President Trump’s demands to eliminate diversity, equity and inclusion programs at universities nationwide. UVA stood to lose millions of dollars in federal funding if Ryan did not agree to step down.

He later accused former Rector Rachel Sheridan of working with the DOJ to orchestrate his ouster.

New Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger pressured Sheridan and four other Board of Visitors members to step down after she took office.