Wilcox will replace Jane Close Conoley, the interim chancellor, who replaced former chancellor Timothy White in December after White left to become chancellor of the California State University system. Wilcox was announced as nominee for the position on July 25.

While Wilcox’s appointment was approved in a unanimous vote, both Gov. Jerry Brown  and Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom spoke out against his compensation package, which includes an annual base salary of $354,000 — an increase of $29,000, or 8.9 percent, from White’s salary.

Brown expressed concerns that Wilcox would receive an increase in salary from the previous chancellor and voted against the compensation package. In November, Brown also opposed an increase in compensation for UC Berkeley Chancellor Nicholas Dirks, citing concern with the university’s cost structure and the need for public administrators to exhibit the spirit of “servant leadership.”

Despite Brown’s opposition, the regents approved the compensation package.

UC President Mark Yudof expressed confidence that Wilcox would excel as chancellor.

“Kim Wilcox brings to the University of California distinctive expertise and interests that will serve the Riverside campus and the larger community exceedingly well,” Yudof said.

Bruce Varner, chair of the Board of Regents, served on the search committee and also expressed support of Wilcox.

“Kim Wilcox emerged as the top choice from an outstanding group of candidates,” Varner said. “He has everything it takes to be not only a strong leader and advocate for students, faculty and staff on campus but also a positive force for the larger community.”

Wilcox will begin his position as chancellor of UC Riverside on Aug. 19.

“I’m humbled and honored and excited about this chance,” Wilcox said. “Every university can become better, and great universities can become greater, and that’s what I see happening at the University of California, Riverside.”

Wilcox has served as provost and executive vice president of Michigan State University since 2005. He previously served as dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at the University of Kansas from 2002 to 2005 and as president and CEO of the Kansas Board of Regents from 1999 to 2002.

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The morning session of the UC Regents meeting on Thursday featured discussions on online education and the establishment of a world food center at UC Davis.

The session opened with a public comment period. Assemblymember Paul Fong, D-Cupertino, emphasized the need for an improved pathway for community college students to transfer into the University of California.

AFSCME Local 3299 President Kathryn Lybarger highlighted the increase in executive compensation since 2008, the doubling of UC debt burden and the thousands of layoffs of UC workers.

“California is watching to see if now is the time we get our priorities straight,” Lybarger said. “It’s time that we do.”

Several students also spoke about animal abuse within the UC system, chanting, “It’s not science — it’s violence.”

The regents then approved the appointment and compensation for co-acting chief investment officers Melvin Stanton and Randolph Wedding.

UC Provost Aimee Dorr gave a presentation regarding online education efforts. Dorr presented the number of students enrolled and courses offered online while the regents asked questions about potentially extending the online program to community college students and using the program for remediation.

UC President Mark Yudof stated that there will soon be more money entering the program but that they needed to get away from the raw numbers.

“We will be discussing with students on campus,” Yudof said. “They know the courses. They know how they are.”

UC Davis Chancellor Linda Katehi then presented on the establishment of a world food center at the UC Davis campus. The center will focus on all aspects of food, specifically the nexus between food and health.

“The signature challenge we face is how we feed and nourish the world,” Katehi said. “More than a century of research and experience gives Davis the expertise to lead this discussion.”

Following Katehi’s presentation, the regents voted to amend the faculty code of conduct. The changes would protect faculty members’ rights to criticize the university and allow faculty to participate in shared governance.

Dorr then presented to the Committee on Long Range Planning about the annual University of California Accountability Report.

“Overall, the report finds that the university continues to maintain its historic levels of access, affordability and accountability,” Dorr said.

UC Regent Norman Pattiz then opened the meeting of the Committee on Oversight of the Department of Energy Laboratories and introduced two researchers from Los Alamos National Laboratory who discussed forest mortality and its future impacts on the world.

The session concluded with the regents passing a resolution in appreciation of Yudof, who is stepping down in August.

Contact Sohan Shah at sohanshah@dailycal.org.

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Check out the UC Regents meeting live stream below:

Video streaming by UCSF

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The Infill Apartments at Kresge, Porter, Cowell and Stevenson colleges on the UC Santa Cruz campus were constructed in 2004 and have suffered extensive water damage due to faulty exterior waterproofing systems and shower assemblies. The university is currently involved in litigation to recover the money from the damage associated with construction defects.

According to John Barnes, associate vice chancellor for physical and planning and construction, the project will be carried out in two phases. In the first phase, the damage at Kresge and Stevenson colleges will be addressed, and in the second phase, Porter and Cowell colleges will be repaired.

The project has a budget of $32,982,000 and will be funded by the Colleges, Housing and  Educational Services Auxiliary Reserves and external financing.

“Though the fee of this project seems high, I feel it’s necessary to ensure safety and to provide us with the manpower to put together a set of documents that are biddable,” Barnes said.

According to UC Santa Cruz Chancellor George Blumenthal, the project covers about 160,000 square feet and about 246 bath and shower assemblies will be examined.

“While we have done extensive forensic investigation, we may encounter additional damage,” Blumental said. “We need to do this project as soon as possible to prevent further damage. We need to create a safe and healthy environments for students.”

While the project is being carried out, displaced students will be placed in two-person rooms that will be made to accommodate three people, according to Blumenthal.

Repairs at Stevenson and Kresge colleges will occur from August 2013 through June 2014, and repairs at Cowell and Porter will occur from July 2014 through May 2015.

Later in the meeting, the regents approved an increase in funding for UCSD Medical Center East Campus Bed Tower, now called the Jacobs Medical Center, to increase inpatient beds, medical units and operating rooms. According to the agenda item posted before the meeting, the increase in funding was $141,460,000.

Contact Jane Nho at jnho@dailycal.org.

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Sarah Brennan/Staff

The UC Board of Regents met Tuesday and Wednesday to discuss and vote on a wide range of issues including the university’s 2012-13 budget and long-term budget model, professional degree programs, the future of a possible UCSF working group and the implications for systemwide tuition given the recently passed state budget. The Committee on Finance also voted to endorse Proposition 30, Gov. Jerry Brown’s tax initiative slated to appear on the November ballot.

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SACRAMENTO — UC students dressed as inmates in a “debtor’s prison” interrupted Wednesday’s UC Board of Regents meeting as the board began to discuss a report critiquing UC campus responses to student protests.

The board moved into closed session as about 20 protesters stood up and circled the public seating area while chanting. “That’s the sound of the students working on the chain gang,” protesters chanted.

Regents moved to another room to discuss closed session items that would otherwise have been saved for after the lunch break, said UC spokesperson Lynn Tierney.

The regents were entering discussion of the report on the response to protest on UC campuses drafted by UC  Vice President and General Counsel Charles Robinson and UC Berkeley School of Law Dean Christopher Edley.

UC spokesperson Peter King said the regents will resume their discussion of the protest report after lunch.

Mandy Cohen, a UC Berkeley graduate student in comparative literature and one of the protesters who interrupted the meeting, called the public comment portion meetings “a joke,” and said that protesters want the regents to address their concerns directly.

Several protesters spoke during public comment and raised concerns over the UC’s accountability. Protesters acted out being arrested by various UC regents as they finished their comments.

The regents are meeting in Sacramento for the first time since 1993 in the hopes of drumming up support for the financially strapped university system, which was just dealt further funding cuts in Gov. Jerry Brown revised budget proposal.

The UC is asking Brown and state lawmakers to increase funding to the UC by $125 million for the next fiscal year in order to avoid a 6 percent fee hike later in the summer. Students and regents are also meeting personally with over 50 members of the legislature over the course of the week, according to UC officials.

Sherry Lansing, chair of the board, said earlier in the meeting that she is encouraged by the UC’s overall treatment in Brown’s latest budget, which proposes deep cuts to the state’s safety net to bridge a nearly $16 billion budget gap.

“As we all know, UC is an engine of opportunity and innovation that benefits every resident of this state,” Lansing said. “What is at stake here affects all of us, not just UC students and their families, but every Californian.”

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