Cal State Fullerton’s interim President Virjee to remain in post, CSU trustees decide

The California State University Board of Trustees on Wednesday announced that Framroze “Fram” Virjee, who has been interim president of Cal State Fullerton since January 2018, will stay in the post.

Virjee becomes the sixth president of Cal State Fullerton. He succeeds Mildred Garcia, who was appointed president of the American Assn. of State Colleges and Universities in November 2017.

“We conducted a national search that included many exemplary candidates, and it became apparent that the best person to be the next president of CSUF was already serving the campus,” said CSU Trustee Silas Abrego, chairman of the search committee. “In his time leading CSUF, Fram has demonstrated unbridled energy and passion for the campus and students, and under his leadership CSUF will reach even greater heights.”

From January 2014 through December 2017, Virjee was executive vice chancellor, general counsel and secretary to the CSU Board of Trustees. In that capacity, he led a staff of attorneys, paralegals and support personnel, and oversaw all legal services for the 23-campus California State University system.

Virjee also served as chief legal officer to the trustees, advising them on all legal issues, including open meeting laws, board rules and procedures, and education code compliance.

Before joining CSU, Virjee was an attorney in private practice for almost 30 years at O’Melveny & Myers, the oldest law firm in Los Angeles, where he specialized in labor and employment law with an emphasis in representing educational institutions in the areas of collective bargaining, education code compliance, and discrimination and employment litigation.

“Joining the Titan family has been the most rewarding professional experience of my career,” Virjee said. “I am thrilled at the opportunity to continue working alongside the tremendously talented faculty, staff and administrators to further the great work enabling student achievement and degree completion that we’ve started, and to chart the path forward for CSUF.”

Virjee holds a bachelor’s degree in political science and sociology from UC Santa Barbara and is a graduate of the UC Hastings College of the Law. The father of three and his wife, Julie, are the founders of Yambi Rwanda, a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping the people of Rwanda.