Acting on the recommendation of President Robert C. Dynes, the
University of California Board of Regents today (September 21)
confirmed the appointment of Roderic B. Park as acting chancellor
of UC Merced, effective immediately.
Park, a veteran academic administrator who has served as the
vice chancellor at UC Berkeley, interim chancellor of the
University of Colorado at Boulder and senior associate to the
chancellor at UC Merced, will assume on an interim basis the
responsibilities of former Chancellor Carol Tomlinson-Keasey, who
stepped down August 31 to return to scholarship and teaching.
A national search for Tomlinson-Keasey’s permanent successor is underway.
“I am delighted that Rod Park has agreed to bring his
considerable talents to the challenge of continuing the powerful
momentum at UC Merced that Carol Tomlinson-Keasey inspired,” Dynes
said. “Rod is a tremendously skilled and seasoned academic leader,
and he brings to this position a rich knowledge of UC Merced and
its development. I know he will work effectively with Executive
Vice Chancellor and Provost Keith Alley and the rest of the UC
Merced community to continue moving the campus forward during this
interim period.”
Park, 74, is professor emeritus of plant biology and the vice
chancellor emeritus at UC Berkeley, where he joined the faculty in
1960 as an assistant professor of botany. He served as provost and
dean of the College of Letters and Science at UC Berkeley from 1972
to 1980 and as a vice chancellor of the campus from 1980 to 1990.
Park was appointed interim chancellor of the University of Colorado
at Boulder in 1994, a position he held until 1997.
“It is a privilege to be associated with the energy and
commitment of the students and faculty at UC Merced as they
continue building this new campus,” Park said. “The opportunities
are enormous, and I share the excitement of the campus community.”
From 2000 to 2001, Park worked to help establish the UC Merced
campus by serving as senior associate for academic development. In
that role, he worked with the chancellor on the early academic
planning and recruitment of senior administrators for the campus.
Park holds a bachelor’s degree from Harvard College and a Ph.D.
from the California Institute of Technology. He was elected a
fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science
in 1990.
Currently retired from the university, Park operates a vineyard
in Sonoma County and continues research in plant physiology and
molecular biology, his fields of academic expertise. He also
contributes to the university as a member of the Board of Visitors
and Fellows of the Department of Viticulture and Enology at UC
Davis, serving as a UC ambassador to the wine industry.
In recognition of these other responsibilities, Park will serve
as acting chancellor at 80 percent time, receiving 80 percent of an
annualized salary of $250,000, or $200,000 per year. In addition to
salary, Park will receive standard pension and health benefits in
accordance with UC policy. He also will be entitled to an annual
administrative fund allocation for official entertainment and other
purposes permitted by university policy and procedures. Because
Park’s permanent residence is in Sonoma County, approximately five
hours’ drive from Merced, he will be allowed to live in the
chancellor’s residence in Merced during his service as acting
chancellor, as an exception to university policy. Because Park is
coming out of retirement to accept the post, his current UC pension
will be suspended while he is serving as acting chancellor.
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A photo of Park is available at:
http://chancellor.ucmerced.edu/
