James B. Milliken, University of Texas chancellor, named next University of California president
James B. Milliken, the chancellor of the University of Texas, has been named the next University of California president by the UC Board of Regents.
Milliken, 68, has spent decades in higher education. Before becoming the chancellor of Texas in 2018, he served as the chancellor of The City University of New York, the president of the University of Nebraska and the senior vice president of the University of North Carolina.
"The University of California is universally regarded as the preeminent public research university in the world, and I am deeply honored to have an opportunity to join the many talented faculty, staff, and campus leaders in their vital work," Milliken said in a statement.
Throughout his career, he's committed to expanding higher education to low-income students.
At Texas, he led an initiative to cover all costs of tuition and fees for eligible students from families earning under $100,000 annually. At Nebraska, he implemented a program providing free tuition and mandatory fees for students whose family income was below $50,000.
While at New York, he helped nearly double the three-year graduation rate of community college students and oversaw the launch of the CUNY School of Medicine.
"He understands how critical UC's contributions are to the state and the country, and he has decades of experience leading public institutions during times of unprecedented change in higher education," said Janet Reilly, chair of the UC Board of Regents. "Chancellor Milliken is simply the right person for UC at just the right time."
Milliken will be the 22nd UC president, replacing Dr. Michael V. Drake, who announced last summer that he would be stepping down after the 2024-2025 academic year. Milliken will take over on Aug. 1.
"Chancellor Milliken has the depth of wisdom and experience to handle the challenges and opportunities of this position," Drake said.
Drake has been the president since July 2020, taking over at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
UC has nearly 300,000 students across 10 campuses. It has six academic health centers and three nationally affiliated laboratories.
