Posts Tagged: Janet Napolitano

UC President Napolitano stepping down

Earlier today (Sept. 18), UC President Janet Napolitano announced that she will be stepping down as president of the University in August 2020. President Napolitano joined UC as the first woman to lead the university in 2013. 

We are thankful for President Napolitano's leadership and vision to address critical issues that affect California, the rest of the country and the world.

Recognizing the challenge of feeding a growing worldwide population, Napolitano launched the Global Food Initiative to inspire more collaboration and draw from the collective resources of all 10 UC campuses, UC Agriculture and Natural Resources and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory to develop solutions for food security, health and sustainability.

To address the threat of climate change, she created the Carbon Neutrality Initiative, which marshals resources from across the UC system to research and develop ways to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

To attract and retain top-flight academics, she created the Presidential Match for Endowed Chairs to help UC campuses and UC ANR encourage donors to establish endowed chairs to fund research. The Presidential Match has enabled UC ANR to fill five endowed positions in UC Cooperative Extension, ensuring the scientists will have a dedicated source of funding for their ongoing agricultural research.

Finally, she emphasized the university's commitment to diversity by taking actions to let immigrant and LGBTQ members of the UC community know they are welcome and supported.

The UC Board of Regents will soon appoint a search committee to start a national search for the next president of the University. Per policy, the search committee will include student, academic and alumni representatives who will seek input from the UC community and the public.

More information, including highlights of President Napolitano's tenure at the University, can be found at https://www.universityofcalifornia.edu/press-room/university-california-president-janet-napolitano-announces-decision-step-down-next-year. 

Glenda Humiston
Vice President

 

View or leave comments for ANR Leadership at http://ucanr.edu/sites/ANRUpdate/Comments.

This announcement is also posted and archived on the ANR Update pages.

President Napolitano announces changes for UC ANR governance and funding

[The original letter from President Napolitano in pdf is attached below.]

Dear Colleagues,

One of the hallmarks of UC's excellence is its commitment to continuous improvement, and over the past few years we have been committed to making changes that will improve the effectiveness and efficiency of the UC Office of the President (UCOP) and align our work in support of the University's core missions.

In late 2017, I initiated a holistic UCOP review by Huron Consulting Group to assess our organizational design, alignment, portfolio and strategy. The goal of this review was to determine the best ways to carry out our complex set of functions and services and make sure we have an organization that supports the future of UC - not merely for the next budget cycle, but for generations to come. The report was completed in January 2018, and one of the options listed in this report was that we consider UC ANR's location to enhance its overall efficiency and effectiveness.

In April 2018, I commissioned the UC ANR Advisory Committee to consider location options for UC ANR, and to review and make recommendations about the Division's scope and funding model and its academic interface with the campuses. The Committee's efforts would help the University to better understand the challenges facing the Division and to consider future state options that may better position it to surmount its challenges and ensure adherence to UC's land grant mission over the years and decades to come.

The UC ANR Advisory Committee, chaired by UCSB Executive Vice Chancellor David Marshall, included one UC Regent, two UC Chancellors, one UC Academic Senate Representative, the PAC Chair, the UC Chief Financial Officer and Executive Vice President, and two campus AES Deans. After developing an extensive Charter to guide its research, analysis, discussions, decision points and responsibilities, the Committee reviewed numerous documents, reports, and data supplied by UC ANR and UCOP, and also conducted its own analyses in consultation with UC ANR and UCOP. The Committee met and consulted with Dr. Glenda Humiston, UC ANR Vice President, who served as an Advisor to the Committee, and greatly benefited from information provided by and presentations from Vice President Humiston and her senior staff, including Wendy Powers, Associate Vice President; Tu Tran, Associate Vice President for Business Operations; and Jan Corlett, Chief of Staff to the Vice President. UC ANR's advice and assistance was very much appreciated.

In addition to UC ANR leadership, the Committee consulted widely with internal and external stakeholders to learn from their perspectives and to ensure that it had a thorough understanding of the benefits and risks of potential options before developing recommendations. These stakeholders included current and recent leadership from UCOP, campuses, the Academic Senate, and the UC ANR community. These and other stakeholders were provided an opportunity to review the Committee's draft report and provide comments before the final report was sent to me for review.

The Committee recognized that UC ANR has a distinguished record of research accomplishments and service to the State of California. However, over the course of its inquiry, and after broad consultation, the Committee saw opportunities to strengthen governance, increase budgetary transparency for both UCOP and UC ANR, provide more stable and predictable funding models, and expand collaborations between UC ANR with the University's broader academic and research enterprise.

I agree with the Committee that these measures, along with a strengthened partnership with the Academic Senate and broader collaboration with all ten UC campuses, will support UC ANR's efforts to fulfill its statewide mission and strategic plan.

In alignment with the UC ANR Advisory Committee's recommendations, I have made the following decisions:

  1. UC ANR will remain a systemwide program within the UC Office of the President, reporting to the President.

  2. We will create a UC ANR Governing Council in early 2019 to support Presidential oversight and promote greater understanding of and participation in UC ANR's mission across the University.

  3. We will fund UC ANR using a model that will establish more stable and sustainable budgets while enhancing governance.

  4. Campuses will maintain oversight of and reporting responsibility for State AES Funds.

UC ANR is integral to the historic and ongoing land-grant mission of the University of California. Grounded in UC's history, it is an important part of the University's future. These decisions are intended to build upon UC ANR's successes, provide budgetary stability, and sustainability through improved financial and governance models, and increase its systemwide standing, effectiveness, and impact.

Thank you for your role in UC ANR's success within the University and across the state of California.

Yours very truly,

Janet Napolitano
President

  

View or leave comments for ANR Leadership at http://ucanr.edu/sites/ANRUpdate/Comments.

This announcement is also posted and archived on the ANR Update pages.

President Napolitano: UC support for those affected by the California wildfires

The following is a message from President Napolitano. For those of you who want to donate or volunteer, the link to the State of California website lists vetted charitable organizations accepting donations as well as volunteer opportunities. 

Dear UCOP colleagues,

As our state continues to be ravaged by some of the worst wildfires in its history, UC is working with all of our locations to ensure the safety and health of students, faculty, staff and the extended UC community.

Many of you have been directly or indirectly affected by the current fires and other recent natural disasters. All of us are moved by the tremendous loss of life and property and concerned about the health and environmental impact on California's residents and land. 

We will recover, but the effects of these disasters will disrupt lives for many months. The University of California remains ready to help all community members needing assistance. In addition to contributing to emergency response statewide and care at our medical centers and campus-based health and counseling centers, this support includes:

• Application deadlines for prospective students impacted by the fires have been extended until December 15, 2018. More information about how to request an extension can be found here. 
• Emergency support from UC benefit plans, and local faculty and staff assistance programs that offer free, confidential resources for emotional health needs are available to UC employees.

For those of you wondering how you can help, the state of California has vetted both volunteer opportunities as well as organizations that are collecting financial contributions. That information is available on the state's website.

I know that you all join me in extending deep gratitude to the firefighters and other first responders still working to contain the danger and helping those who have been touched by these fires.

Yours very truly, 

Janet Napolitano

 

View or leave comments for ANR Leadership at http://ucanr.edu/sites/ANRUpdate/Comments.

This announcement is also posted and archived on the ANR Update pages.

UC releases principles in support of UC community members

Dear Colleagues,

UC Office of the President has issued a statement of its principles regarding the privacy and civil rights of undocumented members of the UC community. These principles may be of interest to UC ANR volunteers, program participants and other stakeholders.

In the press release, UC President Janet Napolitano said, “While we still do not know what policies and practices the incoming federal administration may adopt, given the many public pronouncements made during the presidential campaign and its aftermath, we felt it necessary to reaffirm that UC will act upon its deeply held conviction that all members of our community have the right to work, study, and live safely and without fear at all UC locations.”

Feel free to share this link to the press release:  https://www.universityofcalifornia.edu/press-room/university-california-releases-principles-support-uc-community-members.

Glenda

Glenda Humiston
Vice President

View or leave comments for ANR Leadership at http://ucanr.edu/sites/ANRUpdate/Comments.

This announcement is also posted and archived on the ANR Update pages.

Napolitano names Glenda Humiston to head Agriculture and Natural Resources

The following message is being released from UCOP today. 

University of California President Janet Napolitano will propose to the UC Board of Regents that they approve a veteran administrator with decades of experience in agriculture, natural resources, and sustainability as the next leader of the Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources, she announced today (July 10).

Following a national search, Napolitano has tapped Glenda Humiston, Ph.D., currently the California state director of the U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development, as her nominee for the vice president for the UC Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources. Humiston has 25 years of experience working on agriculture, natural resources, sustainability, and economic development in rural communities. President Obama appointed her to her current position in 2009.

“Glenda Humiston is a great fit for the UC system at a time when drought has heightened the importance of sustainable agricultural practices,” said Napolitano, who launched a Global Food Initiative last year. “She is a knowledgeable, thoughtful and action-oriented leader who will expand the impact of an agriculture and natural resources division whose reach already extends across the globe.”

The UC Board of Regents will vote on the terms of the appointment at its July 21-23 meeting.

“I am thrilled to join UC's work on the ground linking world-class research with local know-how to elevate rural economies and boost agricultural production,” Humiston said. “Together we can work to provide innovative science-based solutions to farmers and deliver healthier food systems and healthier environments for all Californians.”

Humiston, who earned her doctorate in Environmental Science, Policy and Management at UC Berkeley, served President Clinton as deputy undersecretary for natural resources and environment at USDA. She managed the Sustainable Development Institute at the 2002 World Summit for Sustainable Development in South Africa, as well as the World Water Forum in Mexico City in 2006. Early in her career, she served in the Peace Corps in Tunisia.

The ANR head oversees 1,350 people working in 60 county offices, nine research and extension centers, and three administrative centers. The position became vacant upon the retirement of Barbara Allen-Diaz, the former vice president, on June 30.

 

View or leave comments for ANR Leadership at http://ucanr.edu/sites/ANRUpdate/Comments.

This announcement is also posted and archived on the ANR Update pages.

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