UC president to resign after school year, marking end of tumultuous tenure
University of California system President Michael Drake announced on July 31 that he would be stepping down after this school year.
Drake’s tenure was marked by difficult times for the UC system, which included the COVID-19 pandemic and large-scale strikes and protests across its campuses.
University of California system President Michael Drake announced that he would be stepping down after this school year. Drake’s tenure was marked by difficult times for the UC system, which included the COVID-19 pandemic and large-scale strikes and protests across its campuses.
“I am immensely proud of what our students, faculty, and staff have accomplished these past several years,” Drake said in his statement on July 31. “You have weathered a global pandemic and historic natural disasters, dealt with international conflict and domestic political uncertainty, navigated the stresses and opportunities of daily life, all while making our University stronger, more resilient, more impactful, and more inclusive than ever before.”
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Drake took on the role of university president in August 2020, months after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic as well as nationwide protests and riots over George Floyd’s death.
Upon assuming his position, Drake backed efforts aimed at increasing student diversity, such as removing SAT and ACT requirements, as well as doing away with a state ban on affirmative action.
Amid the 2020 summer riots, Drake also discussed his own personal encounters with policing.
”I am acutely and have been personally aware of the harsh and disrespectful policing that people of color face. I’ve faced it. My sons have faced it,” Drake said in 2020. “It’s been a part of American life for all too long, and it’s something that needs to stop and we need to find better ways of being able to keep our communities safe.”
In 2022, nearly 50,000 union employees went on strike from across the UC campuses demanding higher wages and new benefits — the largest work stoppage in the system’s history.
That same year, the UC system announced a plan that “ensures that in-state systemwide Tuition and Student Services Fees are fully covered for California students who are also enrolled in federally recognized Native American, American Indian, and Alaska Native tribes.”
More recently, UC schools had some of the largest campus encampments in support of Hamas, including at UCLA which saw hundreds arrested from multiple campus occupations. These demonstrations cost the LAPD an estimated $600,000 and contributed to the resignation of Chancellor Gene Block.
“He left us with a larger police budget, more economic insecurity for graduate students and an irreconcilable conflict on campus regarding the ongoing genocide of Palestinian” Professor Dylan Rodriguez of UC Riverside said of Drake. “He was at best mediocre if not a failure across the board.”
“On behalf of all Californians, I thank President Drake for his leadership, for growing our UC system, and for paving a brighter path forward for our state,” California Gov. Gavin Newsom remarked. “His legacy of service in higher education has undoubtedly helped us grow the next generation of extraordinary California leaders, and it’s been an honor to work alongside him.”
According to his resignation letter, Drake intends to take a sabbatical before returning in a faculty capacity after this year.
Campus Reform has contacted the University of California for comment. This article will be updated accordingly.
