Milliken, chancellor of the University of Texas system, joins the UC as higher education continues to face pressures from federal government
By RIVERS STOUT— campus@theaggie.org
James B. Milliken, the chancellor of the University of Texas System, was chosen as the 22nd president of the University of California system, the UC Board of Regents announced on May 2. He will replace outgoing President Michael V. Drake, who announced his intent to step down in July of last year and has served in the role since 2020.
“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 press release. “It is more important than ever that we expand the education, research, health care, and public service for which UC is so widely admired and which has benefited so many Californians.”
Milliken has been working on the administrative side of the education field since 1988, when he was an executive assistant to the president of the University of Nebraska. He has since held positions at the University of North Carolina and the City University of New York (CUNY). He has been chancellor of the University of Texas system since 2018.
Prior to working as an administrator, he held various faculty positions with the University of Nebraska’s schools of law and public policy.
As head of the UC system he will be responsible for overseeing all 10 UC campuses, 300,000 students and some 10 million patients annually.
Milliken’s board-approved annual salary is $1,473,000, an increase from Drake’s starting salary of $890,000.
“Chancellor Milliken embodies the qualities and leadership experiences the University of California community needs at this moment,” Janet Reilly, the chair of the UC Board of Regents, said in a UC statement. “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. Chancellor Milliken is simply the right person for UC at just the right time.”
Milliken, who is set to take the reins in August, enters the office during a difficult time for the UC. The system is facing state budget cuts, resulting in a UC-wide hiring freeze and reductions in federal research funding amid increased scrutiny on higher education nationally from the Donald Trump administration.
Still, many state officials hold high hopes for Milliken, with Governor Gavin Newsom being one of them.
“California’s future depends on the strength of our institutions, and few are more vital than the University of California,” Newsom said in a statement. “Chancellor Milliken brings years of experience and the steady, strategic leadership needed to expand UC’s impact across the state. I am excited to see him drive the next chapter of innovation, talent, and progress that will shape California and the country for generations to come.”
Written by: Rivers Stout — campus@theaggie.org
