Search committee to find new UCI chancellor formed

An advisory committee made up of UC Irvine faculty, staff, students, alumni and a foundation representative will assist in the national search for a new chancellor, the university announced Monday.

Bruce Varner, board of regents chairman, also appointed five regents — Russell Gould, Eddie Island, Hadi Makarechian, Richard Sherman and Charlene Zettel — to the committee, according to a news release

Chancellor Michael V. Drake announced his departure from the university in January. He plans to leave UCI at the end of June to become president of Ohio State University.

Howard Gillman, who is the UCI provost and executive vice chancellor, will be serve as interim chancellor during the search.

Faculty representatives on the committee include Tim Bradley, professor in the UCI School of Biological Sciences; Simon Cole, professor in the UCI School of Social Ecology; William Jacob, chairman of the UC Academic Senate and professor in the math department at UC Santa Barbara; Marian Waterman, professor and vice chairwoman in the UC Irvine School of Medicine; and Sandra Weiss, professor in the UC San Francisco School of Nursing.

Jason Valdry, chairman of the UC Irvine Staff Assembly and director of technology at UC Irvine’s Claire Trevor School of the Arts, will serve as a staff representative.

Student representatives include Justin Chung, graduate student in informatics and president of the Associated Graduate Students, and Nicole Hisatomi, undergraduate student in political science and president of the Associated Students.

Alumni Kurt Busch, board member of the UC Irvine Alumni Assn. and member of the UC Irvine Chief Executive Roundtable, and UC Irvine Foundation representative Dr. Hazem Chehabi, will also sit on the committee.

The committee’s first meeting will be held on campus April 11. The group will be involved in recruiting, screening and conducting interviews with candidates for the position, the release stated.

A recommended nominee will probably be submitted to the Board of Regents for approval by September.