The University of California Board of Regents today (March 16) unanimously approved the appointment of Carol T. Christ, UC Berkeley’s interim executive vice chancellor and provost and the former president of Smith College, as the campus’s 11th chancellor. She will be the first woman to serve in the role.
Credit: UC Berkeley
“I am deeply honored that the president and the regents have chosen me to lead Berkeley at this critical moment in its history,” Christ told the board. “I’m even more honored to serve the campus that I love.”
Board Chair Monica Lozano, in congratulating Christ, called her a “true champion of diversity and inclusion,” and noted that her leadership, strategic planning and financial skills are essential ones for UC Berkeley’s new chancellor.
Christ is scheduled to assume her new position on July 1. The current chancellor, Nicholas B. Dirks, announced in August that he would step down to return to teaching and research once a successor is in place.
UC President Janet Napolitano told the board one of the key reasons she selected Christ for the chancellorship was because “she is the very best of what UC Berkeley — and the University of California as a whole — represents. She is committed to, and upholds, the core values of our great university.”
“Dr. Christ has a way with making things better,” Napolitano said. “She builds strong relationships, and trust, with diverse groups and diverse individuals, and then forms consensus and finds solutions. In challenges, she uncovers opportunities and improves upon them.
“I believe she is the right person to lead what is widely regarded as the best public research university in the world. It also helps that she loves the place, and the faculty, students, staff, alumni and community who make Berkeley what it is: rightly famous.”
The board also set Christ’s annual compensation at $531,939, which is the current chancellor’s salary.
For more information and background on Christ, please click here.