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  • UC taps Rich Lyons as next Berkeley chancellor

    UC taps Rich Lyons as next Berkeley chancellor


    Rich Lyons, the next UC Berkeley chancellor.

    Credit: Courtesy of UC Berkeley

    This story has been updated with additional quotes.

    Rich Lyons, UC Berkeley’s top innovation official and former business school dean, will become the next chancellor of the campus, the university announced Wednesday.

    Lyons, 63, an alumnus of Berkeley, will start in the role on July 1, when current Chancellor Carol Christ will step down. 

    “I am humbled and thrilled to become UC Berkeley’s next chancellor, following the remarkable leadership of Chancellor Christ. Berkeley is one-of-a-kind, and I will endeavor to honor its traditions and history while guiding the campus into its next chapter and growing its impact,” Lyons said in a statement. 

    When he assumes the role this summer, Lyons will take over at a particularly fraught time in higher education, including at Berkeley. Israel’s war in Gaza has divided the campus, where there have been numerous protests and demonstrations since last fall. Last month, the U.S. Department of Education announced it is investigating Berkeley over potential incidents of discrimination related to the war.

    Faculty at Berkeley, meanwhile, “have never been more demoralized,” the Berkeley Faculty Association wrote in an open letter to the next chancellor last week. In the letter, the faculty lamented that they have not received a raise in line with inflation for many years and that their salaries lag behind the faculty at peer institutions.

    The result, according to the faculty, “is a campus that is close to the breaking point,” with faculty who are burdened with maintaining Berkeley’s reputation despite “ever-diminishing resources and ever-deteriorating working conditions.” Faculty have also struggled to afford housing in the expensive San Francisco Bay Area, they wrote. 

    At the same time, Berkeley is “struggling to maintain its reputation as a bastion of free speech and academic freedom,” according to the faculty. “Across the country, the alt-right has sought to neutralize universities as spaces of critical thought. They have found allies on our own campus who are worried that potential donors may be alienated from the Berkeley ‘brand,’” the faculty association wrote.

    In a statement to EdSource responding to the faculty letter, Lyons said he plans to prioritize shared governance with faculty upon assuming his new role.

    “Coming from over 30 years on the Berkeley faculty, I have great appreciation for our faculty’s excellence and the context in which that excellence is delivered. I see many opportunities for new investment in our faculty and all that they need to thrive,” he said.

    Lyons served as dean of the Haas School of Business from 2008 to 2018. He is also a professor of economics and finance at the school. Since 2020, he has been in his current role as Berkeley’s chief innovation and entrepreneurship officer.

    UC systemwide President Michael Drake, who helped select Lyons, said in a statement that he would be a “bold and visionary leader” for the campus committed to “preserving Berkeley’s academic and research prowess.”

    As chancellor, Lyons will earn an annual salary of $946,450. 

    After earning his bachelor’s degree in business from Berkeley in 1982, Lyons also received a Ph.D. in economics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1987. He joined the Berkeley faculty as a professor of finance in 1993 and has been on the campus ever since, other than spending two years working as the chief learning officer at Goldman Sachs beginning in 2006. 

    Lyons’ predecessor as chancellor, Christ, said in a statement that she is “thrilled and reassured” by the selection of Lyons as the next chancellor. “In so many ways, Rich embodies Berkeley’s very best attributes, and his dedication to the university’s public mission and values could not be stronger,” she added.





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  • UCLA chancellor faces Congress, says he regrets not removing encampment sooner

    UCLA chancellor faces Congress, says he regrets not removing encampment sooner


    UCLA Chancellor Gene Block testifies during a hearing of the House Committee on Education and the Workforce regarding pro-Palestinian protests on college campuses on Capitol Hill on May 23, 2024, in Washington.

    Credit: AP Photo / Mariam Zuhaib

    This story was updated with additional quotes and information from Thursday’s hearing.

    Testifying in front of a congressional committee Thursday, UCLA Chancellor Gene Block said he regrets not acting sooner to remove the pro-Palestinian encampment that was violently attacked last month by counter protesters.

    “With the benefit of hindsight, we should have been prepared to immediately remove the encampment if and when the safety of our community was put at risk,” Block said during prepared remarks to the Republican-led House Committee on Education and the Workforce.

    Block, who himself is Jewish, testified before the committee in Washington, D.C., as part of a hearing on antisemitism on college campuses. It was the third time the committee had called on university leaders to testify about antisemitism since last fall, and the first time that a chancellor or president from California has testified.

    Testifying alongside Block were Michael Schill, the president of Northwestern University, and Jonathan Holloway, the president of Rutgers University.

    For the most part, Block avoided harsh questioning during the hearing, with lawmakers spending more time grilling Holloway and especially Schill. Some of his most insightful remarks came during his opening statement, when he addressed the encampment that sprang up on the UCLA campus on April 25.

    Block said he initially followed UC system guidance, which is to only use law enforcement to remove protesters “when absolutely necessary” to protect the safety of the campus. 

    But as the encampment grew to more than 500 protesters, “some of whom were not even affiliated with UCLA,” Block said he decided on April 28 to remove the encampment. He then gave the protesters written notice on April 30, but it was too late. Later that night, a violent mob of counter demonstrators attacked the encampment, resulting in injuries and hospitalizations.

    Meanwhile, as Block addressed the lawmakers Thursday, protesters on UCLA’s campus were erecting a new encampment Thursday.

    Later during Thursday’s hearing, Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) questioned Block about the violent attacks, which she said he could have prevented. 

    “The recent images from UCLA are appalling. What is more appalling is that it was completely preventable. You could have prevented this by protecting the diverse groups of pro-Palestinian students that were peacefully gathered on campus,” she said.

    “Are any of these people in jail?” Omar then asked, referring to the counter protesters who attacked the encampment.

    Block said Los Angeles police are still working to identify the assailants from that evening. 

    “It’s been over a month,” Omar responded.

    Block also faced questions over allegations that the UCLA encampment was blocking Jewish and pro-Israel students from parts of campus. Rep. Kevin Kiley (R-Calif.) shared a video that he said showed Jewish students being blocked by encampment protesters from getting to class. 

    “After we learned about that, I sent a message to all our student affairs people to make sure the pathways were open for everyone. And I sent the message out to our community,” Block said when Kiley asked if the encampment protesters were disciplined, an answer that did not satisfy Kiley.

    Rep. Virginia Foxx, the Republican chair of the committee from North Carolina, also criticized Block for that incident. In her closing remarks, Foxx said there was “horrifying footage of encampment members setting up illegal checkpoints, denying Jewish students access to central parts of campus.”

    Republicans spent more time questioning Schill, the Northwestern president. They criticized him for coming to an agreement with pro-Palestinian protesters on his campus, but Schill defended himself and said he “rejected the main student demand of divestment.” Northwestern’s agreement did include a promise to disclose more information about its investments.

    “We had to get the encampment down,” Schill said Thursday. That answer, however, did not satisfy lawmakers.

    Outside the hearing, faculty members from Rutgers, Northwestern and UCLA criticized Republican lawmakers over the hearing and said it was an attack on higher education.

    That included Mia McIver, an English professor at UCLA who during a live streamed press conference called the hearing a “shameful farce.”

    “Instead of focusing on learning, teaching, inquiry, understanding, analysis, and argumentation, which are the primary functions of higher ed, the committee’s perverse obsession with harsh discipline and bizarre thirst for punishment revealed that the real goal is to shut down repress, suppress and criminalize constitutionally protected speech and action,” McIver said.





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  • A conversation with Cal State Chancellor Mildred Garcia

    A conversation with Cal State Chancellor Mildred Garcia


    Mildred Garcia, chancellor of the California State University System.

    Credit: Cal State Fullerton/Flickr

    In October 2023, Mildred Garcia stepped into her role as chancellor for the California State University, becoming the first Latina in the nation to lead a four-year public university system. Formerly the president of the American Association of State Colleges and Universities, Garcia joined the CSU system at a time of post-pandemic turbulence.

    Garcia sat down with California Student Journalism Corps reporter Alexcia Negrete in early May for an interview to discuss Garcia’s leadership goals, with student concerns being the primary focus.

    The discussion ranged from underrepresented groups having increased access to the CSU system, to Title IX (sex discrimination) issues, to enrollment and tuition challenges.

    This interview was edited for clarity and length.

    What are the main goals that the CSU, or the main goals that you have to continue supporting students in the next school year?

    My North Star is student success, equity, affordability, graduation, retention, everything. The reason I am here is because of the students we serve. We serve the first-generation, the low-income, the students of color, and the adults in the majority in California, with a four-year degree and beyond. 

    And we are going to be the role model — or we are the role models — on how we graduate students from diverse backgrounds to reach their highest potential. Everything I do is centered on that — how does this affect the students, the families and their goals to reach where they want to be? 

    And sometimes that goes against people’s perceptions; but this is mine, right? Because I am a first-generation college student. I know how it changes lives. I know we came from a very poor family. And I know how now people that come after me — my nieces and nephews and family members — will say not ‘Will I go to college?’ The question is, ‘What college am I going to go to?’ And so for me, it’s part of my passion, my mission and my life’s work.

    You have been president of two Cal State universities, Dominguez Hills and Fullerton, and you have been able to work with students one-on-one during that time. But as a chancellor, that can sometimes feel a little separated. What would you want students to know about you?

    I think No. 1 is that I had a similar background that they had. … I grew up in a very poor neighborhood. Then my father died when I was 12, and we had to move to the housing projects of Brooklyn. 

    I had to work my way to college. We were seven children, and my mother had to support us on a factory salary. … Everybody has a different story, but it’s a story of having the hunger to do better, because we want out of poverty, we want to live a satisfying life (with) economic independence. 

    I marvel and congratulate each student that is struggling to get that degree and go on and be whatever they want to be — whatever that goal is — and go off and help others and reach their highest potential and be engaged citizens in our communities and cities in California. … It’s not just the college degree, but it’s a path, it’s a chapter in your journey of your book of life. 

    As a whole, the CSU has faced Title IX scandals, which have led to some students expressing concerns about the overall Title IX process. How will you work to repair the trust lost by the students, and overall, change the image of the process by the CSU?

    Well, first of all, we had a huge report by Cozen O’Connor, and also the state auditor, and we are following those steps. Every president has a committee now on how to implement steps, and (they) are supposed to be communicating with their campuses how to really have a voice and have nobody be afraid, with no retaliation on issues of Title IX. 

    Every campus now is going to have a committee, someone in charge, and we at the Chancellor’s Office are going to monitor that. … Every president of every university in the CSU has a goal (of) reporting to me that Title IX is a priority, and that they are implementing the recommendations of the Cozen O’Connor report, and they will be held accountable for that. 

    What my hope is, is that each of the campuses is working with their vice president for student affairs, the provost and … human resources, (and explaining) our process. Yes, you can come forward; we will make sure that there is a process, and it’s documented, and that we follow the procedure to do the investigations.

    In the CSU, there have been some campuses facing some declining enrollment, and some campuses have been forced to cut classes or faculty members. Are you currently working to ensure that students are still getting the education that they need, regardless of the classes (and faculty) being cut? And if so how? 

    The answer is yes. Each president is working with their teams to ensure that the students that we have admitted will be able to get the classes and graduate. That is their No. 1 goal. 

    My No. 1 goal is for the students to have a wonderful experience on their campus and graduate, get the classes and go off and do great things and then come back and tell us about it and become great alumni. 

    Our No. 1 priority with our team — which is all the presidents and the vice chancellors — is student success. It’s going to be different on each campus, right? So each president has to work with their teams to set up structures and practices, and then hold themselves accountable to watch how students are progressing to graduation.

    Before you officially started as chancellor, CSU trustees voted to increase tuition for the next five years. A lot of students have disagreed with the decision and have had protests, saying that the Cal States will now become too expensive for them, or they won’t get enough financial aid support. What kind of reassurance can you provide students who are currently working to pay their tuition and who are concerned about the tuition increase?

    First of all, let me go to the data — I don’t have any exact numbers in front of us, but 60% of students have their tuition completely covered. So for the students, it’s not the tuition that’s giving them the problem, it’s the cost of living. What we have to figure out is how do we help and bring together Pell [Grants], State University grants and scholarships to be able to help each of the students really reach the cost of living as much as possible. 

    While I understand the students — I had to pay my way through college, and I worked three to four, multiple jobs, during the year — our tuition is one of the cheapest in the country. If most of our students are getting their tuition paid, what’s really hurting them is the cost of attendance.

    And so we’re trying to figure out ways that we can help the students — that’s No. 1. No. 2, I have been lobbying — even before I came here, at my former job in Washington, D.C. — to double Pell. No. 3, we need to work with our state legislators, who have been good to us, about telling them the need for more resources, for state universities like the California State University system.

    The CSU as a whole is anticipating more universitywide budget cuts due to less state aid, and some campuses, because of those cuts, have made cuts to their programs and positions. How will you continue to make sure that students feel supported during this time when we’re getting less state aid?

    Each campus has to look at what are core necessities for students so that they can grant what it is that they need the most. Each campus has to look at, ‘What is it that our students need in order to graduate, and how do we do that in a limited budget?’ 

    It’s very much like your budget at home — you have a budget, you’ve got to pay rent, you’ve got to pay your electricity, you’ve got to pay whatever it is that you pay — and you use your paycheck and the fringes have to go. You may not be able to go to dinner three times a week. 

    It’s the same thing with a university, you take your budget, and you say, ‘What’s our No. 1 priority?’ The No. 1 priority is our students graduating, our students getting their classes, and our students getting the support services they need in order to be doing well in classes and graduate. 

    Is there anything else that you would like to tell us?

    I think that the CSU has to understand they’re a very special place. I worked with 400 institutions across this country when I was in Washington, D.C., and we have to be working together to tell our powerful story saying what the value of the CSU is. Eighty percent of our students stay within a 50-mile radius of where they live after they graduate. That means (they) are the entrepreneurs, the journalists, the people who are going to run businesses, the people who go on to graduate school, the people who become medical doctors. This is what we’re doing for California, this is what we’re doing for the cities. 

    It’s a private good, I’ll give you that. It helps you and your family for generations to come. But it also helps the city and communities in the state because you pay taxes, you are engaged in your community, you are leaders, you vote, you’re healthier, all of that. 

    Look, I’m the first one to say nobody’s perfect; we have a lot to do to be better. But we are engaged in such a way that so many of our students are doing great things. … That’s what we need to be talking about. (We need to) continue to do better, improve performance, learn from our mistakes and get better.

    Ashley Bolter is a fourth-year journalism major and French and ethnic studies minor at Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo. Alexcia Negrete is a fourth-year communications major at California State University, Fullerton. Both are members of EdSource’s California Student Journalism Corps.





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  • Julio Frenk, University of Miami president, named next UCLA chancellor

    Julio Frenk, University of Miami president, named next UCLA chancellor


    Julio Frenk, president of the University of Miami, has been selected as the next chancellor of UCLA.

    Credit: UCLA

    Julio Frenk, the current president of the University of Miami and a public health researcher, will become the next chancellor of UCLA.

    The University of California’s board of regents on Wednesday unanimously approved Frenk, who was born in Mexico and will become the first Latino chancellor to lead UCLA.

    Frenk will earn an annual base salary of $978,904 and will start in the role Jan. 1.

    “I am eager to take this role for several reasons,” Frenk said Wednesday, addressing the regents. “This is a crucial moment for higher education. We need bold innovation, and UCLA has a track record of embracing that kind of innovation.” 

    Frenk, 70, will succeed current Chancellor Gene Block, who plans to step down from the role July 31. Darnell Hunt, UCLA’s executive vice chancellor and provost, will serve as the interim chancellor until Frenk takes over.

    Frenk’s appointment comes as UCLA reels from months of pro-Palestinian protests. Earlier this spring, Block was criticized for being unprepared after a mob of counter-demonstrators attacked a pro-Palestinian encampment on the campus. About two dozen pro-Palestinian protesters this week were arrested on the campus.

    “At this moment, campus communities across the country are facing complex questions related to protecting student well-being, stopping all forms of discrimination and upholding free expression rights,” Frenk said Wednesday. “University leaders must take up these issues thoughtfully while continuing to advocate for the immense value that higher education generates.” 

    Frenk has led the University of Miami since 2015. During his time there, he was credited with orchestrating a $2.5 billion fundraising campaign and leading the university through the Covid-19 pandemic, among other accomplishments.

    Frenk is the second high-profile education leader to leave the Miami area in recent years for Los Angeles. Alberto Carvalho, the superintendent of the Los Angeles Unified School District since February 2022, had previously served as the superintendent of Miami-Dade County Public Schools.

    Prior to leading Miami, Frenk was dean of faculty at the public health school of Harvard University, the T.H. Chan School of Public Health. He was also previously the federal secretary of health in Mexico, where he was credited with reforming the nation’s health system. 

    “I am thrilled to welcome Dr. Frenk as the next chancellor of UCLA,” Richard Leib, chair of UC’s board of regents, said in a statement. “Dr. Frenk’s strategic and inspirational leadership, along with his extensive background in education and health, including his time as the Federal Secretary of Health of Mexico, uniquely positions him to guide UCLA into a future of impact and innovation.”

    Frenk was born in Mexico City in 1953. His father, who was 6 years old at the time, fled Nazi Germany in the 1930s along with his parents and sister. Frenk’s father, grandfather and great-grandfather were all physicians.

    Frenk earned his medical degree in 1979 from the National University of Mexico. He also received degrees from the University of Michigan, including a master’s in public health, a master’s in sociology and a joint doctorate in medical care organization and sociology.

    The pool of candidates for UCLA’s next chancellor “was remarkable,” but Frenk stood out “for his unique combination of scholarly, medical, administrative and political expertise,” James Steintrager, the chair of UC’s academic senate, said in a statement. “How he straddles the worlds of university research and health care delivery makes him an excellent fit for UCLA.”





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  • University of Texas Chancellor James Milliken chosen as next University of California president

    University of Texas Chancellor James Milliken chosen as next University of California president


    James Milliken, the next UC president, has deep experience running higher education systems in Texas and New York.

    Credit: University of California

    James B. Milliken, the chancellor of the University of Texas system and a veteran administrator with a history of leading public college systems, was selected Friday as the next president of the University of California.

    Milliken will take over the 10-campus UC system at a tumultuous time as it faces Trump administration threats to pull funding that could diminish the university’s research capacity, medical care and student services. UC is also likely to receive a significant cut to its state funding this year, providing further complications. 

    Milliken, familiarly called JB, also previously headed the University of Nebraska and the City University of New York, an urban system that includes seven community colleges, 11 four-year campuses and seven professional, graduate or honors schools. 

    Janet Reilly, chair of the UC board of regents, said Milliken is someone “who understands the transformative power of a public university system and who can build on UC’s legacy as a global leader in research and academics and public service.”

    “These times call for a president who is an effective advocate, a clear communicator and a collaborative partner to our many constituents, someone who can lead with vision and humility,” Reilly said, “and after an extensive national search. I am proud to say I think we have found that leader in JB Milliken.”

    Milliken, who is 68, will start his new job on Aug. 1 after Michael V. Drake, the system’s current president, steps down. Drake has been UC’s president since 2020 and has had stints as president of Ohio State University and chancellor of UC Irvine. 

    Milliken, who attended the regents meeting in San Francisco on Friday in person, acknowledged this is a difficult time but struck an optimistic note. We know that higher education faces challenges and changes. What will not change is the University of California’s historic mission, teaching, research, health care and public service,” he said.

    Milliken, whose initial contract is for five years, will make a base salary of $1.475 million, up from Drake’s $1.3 million.  

    During past stints as a president and chancellor, Milliken is credited with expanding STEM programs, prioritizing affordability and supporting undocumented students. Under his leadership at UT, the system cut a number of jobs and programs after Texas Gov. Greg Abbott signed a law banning many diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs.

    Milliken said Friday that U.S. colleges are “the greatest engines of social and economic mobility the world has ever seen,” but noted that confidence in the sector is at historic lows.

    “Yet I remain firmly convinced that higher education is more important than at any point in our history, at a time when knowledge is increasing at a faster rate than ever,” he said. “New technologies are providing previously unimagined capabilities, and our graduates are enjoying opportunities in fields that didn’t even exist a few years ago. It’s abundantly clear that we must continue to invest in the most successful higher education model in the world.”

    Prior to his career in academia, which also included a period as senior vice president at the University of North Carolina, Milliken worked at a Wall Street law firm. He has a bachelor’s degree from the University of Nebraska and a law degree from New York University.

    Milliken is the second UC president in recent history to enter the job after a stint as chancellor of the University of Texas system. Mark Yudof, UC’s president from 2008 to 2013, was UT’s system chancellor from 2002 to 2008. He will be the 22nd UC president since the university was founded in 1868.

    Milliken will be required as UC’s president to oversee 10 varied campuses, $8 billion a year of research money and six medical centers. His experience leading UT may make him well-positioned to do that. The UT system includes nine academic universities and five health institutions. The system enrolls about 256,000 students; UC has nearly 300,000.

    UT has annual research expenditures of $4.3 billion, and the system ranks second in annual federal research spending among public universities — trailing only UC.

    UC gets about $6 billion annually in federal funds for research and other program supports, not including additional large sums its hospitals receive through Medicare and Medicaid. Cuts to that funding would be felt across the immense system, which comprises nine undergraduate campuses and one graduate-only campus, UC San Francisco. All 10 campuses have R1 status from the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education, the highest tier for research universities. 

    UC officials defended Milliken’s new salary, on top of which he will receive free housing. A memo to the regents outlining his compensation package said UC faces “a highly competitive national market” for presidents and chancellors to lead top-tier research universities. Market data shows “increasingly higher compensation levels” among suitable candidates, according to the memo.

    In a statement, Gov. Gavin Newsom, a UC regent by virtue of his office, said Milliken “brings years of experience and the steady, strategic leadership needed to expand UC’s impact across the state.”

    Constance Penley, president of the Council of University of California Faculty Associations, said she was “cautiously optimistic” about the new UC president. “I liked very much what I’ve been able to discover about his commitment to access and equity in public higher education that he’s shown across four different universities and four different states.”

    Currently, the Trump administration is investigating several UC campuses on a variety of allegations, including discriminatory admissions practices and complaints of antisemitism. Most recently, the Department of Education opened a probe into UC Berkeley, accusing the campus of “incomplete or inaccurate” disclosures of foreign funding sources.

    The Trump administration has also zeroed in on race-based programs. Earlier this year, the U.S. Department of Education said colleges that use race in “admissions, hiring, promotion, compensation, financial aid, scholarships, prizes, administrative support, discipline, housing, graduation ceremonies, and all other aspects of student, academic, and campus life” violate federal law. 

    UC officials have since said that the order would not immediately impact its campuses and that maintaining their racially themed programs, such as graduation ceremonies and dormitory floors, is not illegal.

    In Texas, lawmakers in 2023 passed Senate Bill 17, which prohibits colleges from having a DEI office, hiring employees to perform the duties of a DEI office or requiring anyone to provide a DEI statement or undergo DEI training, according to The Texas Tribune.

    In response, UT cut 300 staff positions and eliminated more than 600 programs related to DEI training, according to The Associated Press. 

    “You may not like the law, but it is the law,” Milliken said at the time.

    UC in March announced it would no longer require diversity statements as part of its faculty hiring process, but has otherwise made no major changes to its DEI programming or policies. 

    On top of the federal uncertainties, UC also faces the likelihood of a substantial cut to its state funding this year, even as it is expected to continue increasing California resident enrollment and improve graduation rates. Gov. Gavin Newsom’s January budget proposal included an 8% cut, or $400 million, for UC. Milliken has previously had to contend with state funding cuts — or at least the threat of them. In 2016, then-New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo planned to slash $485 million from CUNY’s budget, though that funding was ultimately restored. 





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