Outgoing chancellors lauded

Board of Regents Chair Richard C. Blum described UC Davis' Larry Vanderhoef and UCSF's J. Michael Bishop as "two of our very best chancellors."

"We owe them a great debt of gratitude that can never be repaid," Blum said at the May 7 board meeting just before inviting their successors to the podium to deliver brief remarks.

Vanderhoef came to UC Davis in 1984 as executive vice chancellor and subsequently become provost and executive vice chancellor, until his appointment as UC Davis’ fifth chancellor in 1994.

He is not leaving UC Davis; as chancellor emeritus, he plans to write a book, develop and teach a new class (a biology course for nonscience majors) and continue his work on building international links, in addition to carrying out other service activities nationally and on campus.

Bishop has served as UCSF chancellor since 1998.

Yudof's first chancellor picks

Linda Katehi and Susan Desmond-Hellmann are President Mark G. Yudof's first chancellor appointments since he became the UC president in mid-2008.

Katehi at UC Davis and Desmond-Hellmann at UCSF also are the first female chancellors at their respective campuses; they join one other female chancellor (Marye Anne Fox of UC San Diego) in the 10-campus UC system.

UCSF's chancellor-designate

Susan Desmond-Hellmann, 51, is a board-certified physician in internal medicine and medical oncology who has dedicated much of her career to cancer research.

“As an accomplished clinician, researcher and manager, she brings all the tools needed to take the campus to even greater heights," UC President Mark G. Yudof said. "That she did her internal medicine and oncology training at UCSF makes the match even more ideal: She knows the institution well.”

Yudof noted that this is a pivotal time for both health care in general and UCSF in particular, with the pending construction of a new hospital at Mission Bay to serve children, women and cancer patients.

“Susan has the credentials to help ensure that California and the university are major players in reshaping the nation’s health care environment,” Yudof said. “And she has the know-how and leadership skills to make sure the Mission Bay hospital is a success.”

Desmond-Hellmann recently left South San Francisco-based Genentech after 14 years as a clinical scientist, chief medical officer, executive vice president and, most recently, president of product development. During her time at Genentech, she oversaw successful trials for therapeutic drugs, including Herceptin, Avastin and Rituxan, targeting a range of cancers and other diseases.

Previously, she was associate director of clinical cancer research at Bristol-Myers Squibb, worked in private medical practice, and co-led AIDS and cancer research projects in Uganda.

She completed her clinical training at UCSF after receiving her medical degree from the University of Nevada, Reno; she holds a master’s degree in public health from UC Berkeley.

She has served at UCSF as an assistant professor in hematology-oncology and is now an adjunct associate professor.

“My life’s work has been focused on making a difference for patients, and I cannot think of a better place than UCSF to carry that work forward," Desmond-Hellmann said in a May 1 news release from the Office of the President. "As the health needs of the world continue to change, UCSF will continue to play a pivotal role in developing solutions through its research, teaching and clinical care across all the health disciplines.”

The regents set Desmond-Hellman's annual salary at $450,000.

Board skips UCSD so campus can focus on swine flu matters

This week’s Board of Regents meeting was supposed to take place May 5-7 at UC San Diego. But the campus and its medical center are engaged in extensive efforts to help the campus and region deal with the swine flu outbreak, and UC officials in Oakland did not want a regents meeting to distract from those efforts.

Therefore, UC officials decided to cut the meeting from three days to one, and to conduct the meeting via teleconference, with UCSF as the base (this is where Chair Richard C. Blum and President Mark G. Yudof and other systemwide officials gathered for their participation in the meeting).

“Our decision to conduct the meeting telephonically is to ensure we do not divert the attention or resources of the campus as they work to keep the campus community safe and prevent any health issues related to the H1N1 flu,” Blum said.

“We thought it best to meet our legal and operational obligations and conduct the meeting by phone, without asking the campus to stretch resources better applied elsewhere during this challenging time.”

As usual with regents meetings via telephone, UC set up numerous sites around the state where people could listen to the meeting and participate.

Regents elect new chair: Russell Gould

The Board of Regents on May 7 elected Russell Gould to a one-year term as chair, succeeding Richard C. Blum.

Gould, who holds a bachelor's degree in political science from UC Berkeley,  served in Gov. Pete Wilson's administration as secretary of the Health and Welfare Agency from 1991 to 1993 and director of the Department of Finance from 1993 to 1996.

Gould has been serving this year as chair of the board's Committee on Finance.

Gov. Schwarzenegger appointed Gould to the Board of Regents in 2005; he is serving a 12-year term. He has been the board's vice chair since last July 1, and his term as chair starts this July 1.

"It has been an honor and privilege to serve this institution as a regent, and I have accepted the position of chair with a profound sense of respect," Gould said. "As a graduate of the University of California, I hold the system close to my heart.

"Particularly in these uncertain financial times, I look forward to working with President (Mark G.) Yudof and my colleagues on the board to navigate the challenges of the coming months and sustain the University of California as the premier institution of public higher education in the nation."

In a news release, Yudof stated: "Chairman Gould's deep background and expertise in finance provides the university with a tremendous resource, not only to guide the board in its challenging decision making but to work closely with the administration to position us strategically for continued success. I greatly look forward to working with him as chair."

Gould has served as senior vice president of Wachovia Bank, providing leadership in business development and strategic partnerships as senior managing director of Wachovia Portfolio Services, formerly Metropolitan West Securities, which he joined in 1996.

While at Metropolitan West, Gould also served as executive vice president of the J. Paul Getty Trust, where he was responsible for the investments of the trust's $5.5 billion in assets.

The regents elected Sherry Lansing as vice chair for 2009-10. She is founder of the Sherry Lansing Foundation, and former chairman and chief executive officer of Paramount Pictures Motion Picture Group, a position she held for 12 years. Prior to that, she headed her own production company.

Lansing holds a Bachelor of Science degree from Northwestern University.  Gov. Gray Davis appointed her to the Board of Regents in 1999.

The regents also approved this lineup of committee chairs for 2009-10: Fred Ruiz, Compliance and Audit; Bruce Varner, Compensation; Eddie Island, Educational Policy; Monica Lozano, Finance; Leslie Tang Schilling, Grounds and Buildings; Lansing, Health Services; Paul Wachter, Investments; Joanne Kozberg, Long-Range Planning; and Norman Pattiz, Oversight of the Department of Energy Laboratories.

The board elected Bonnie Reiss to represent UC on the California Postsecondary Education Commission.