The University of Idaho Argonaut

University of Idaho President Tim White was appointed by the University of California Board of Regents to take the chancellor position at the UC Riverside today.

The announcement was made at the UC Regents meeting at UCLA after a closed session to approve the chancellor recommendation made by UC President Robert Dynes.

He will leave UI June 30.

Dynes was advised by a committee of regents, students, faculty, staff, alumni and members of the community. The search committee had more than 100 possible prospects for the position. White’s appointment at UCR will take effect on or before Sept. 1.

“I am deeply thrilled by this opportunity, this privilege,” White said. “I am deeply honored and humbled by this appointment.”

White, who received his Ph.D from UC Berkeley, said the opportunity was a symbiotic way to give back to university community.

“(White) comes from the University of Idaho, where he served with great distinction since 2004,” Dynes said. “He exemplifies public higher education. He’s deeply committed to education opportunities.”

White will succeed France A Cordova, who was appointed president of Purdue University in May 2007. Robert Grey, a professor and former UC Davis executive vice chancellor, has been acting chancellor since then.

As chancellor, White’s annual salary will be $325,000, and he will receive university-provided housing.

UCR is the third smallest of the 10 schools that comprise the UC system and has approximately 17,000 students. It is a land-grant institution.

““He has a unique grasp of the mission of land-grant universities and a passion for that mission,” Dynes said. “His multicultural roots and personal experience with higher education have given him a deep commitment to diversity and inclusiveness.

White announced to the Idaho Board of Regents and other university leaders that he was considering a position at another school last month, but declined to comment on which school he was considering.

White was appointed president of UI in August 2004 after a financial scandal that stemmed from an unsuccessful expansion project in Boise. He established a strategic action plan as one of his first priorities after arriving at UI. 

His presidency also led to the creation of Operation Education, a scholarship opportunity for military service personnel, the establishment of improvement plans for the renovations for the Kibbie Dome and the creation of the Center for Advanced Energy Studies.

He previously served as interim president, executive vice president and provost and Oregon State University. He was also a professor and served as the chair of the movement science department in the division of kinesiology at the University of Michigan.