Dr. M.R.C. Greenwood named president of the University of Hawaii

University of Hawaiʻi
Contact:
Carolyn Tanaka, (808) 956-9803
External Affairs & University Relations
Posted: Jun 10, 2009


HONOLULU — Dr. M.R.C. Greenwood, chancellor emerita of the University of California, Santa Cruz, has been named president of the University of Hawaiʻi System. Greenwood‘s appointment, approved today by the University of Hawaiʻi Board of Regents (BOR), is for three years, with two annual renewal options, beginning no later than August 24, 2009, at an annual salary of $475,008, subject to any reduction for UH administrative officers that may be instituted.

A nationally and internationally known expert on obesity and diabetes, Greenwood is also considered a national leader on science and technology policy and an expert on higher education policy issues.

"Our objective in adding to the talent at the University of Hawaiʻi is to continue the great progress made by President David McClain and his current administrative team and to expand on the efforts to strengthen our campuses and programs that benefit all the people of Hawaiʻi," said UH Board of Regents Chair Allan Landon. "I believe that Dr. Greenwood is ideally prepared to do that. She is a great scholar with an excellent research reputation. She understands the importance of learning about our local culture and building her knowledge of current challenges and issues. There is a great foundation of executives in place, and Dr. Greenwood is committed to continuing forward in the direction that has been established by President McClain."

Greenwood is currently director of the Foods for Health Initiative, chair of the Graduate Group in Nutritional Biology and distinguished professor of nutrition and internal medicine at the University of California, Davis. She also holds an appointment as adjunct professor of public health and nutrition at the University of California, Berkeley.

She previously served as provost and senior vice president for academic affairs for the UC system, the second highest position in the 10 campus system.

"I am honored to be selected as the next president of the University of Hawaiʻi," said Greenwood. "I know, and appreciate, how vitally important the university is to the State of Hawaiʻi. I want to thank the Regents for entrusting me with the presidency. I will commit my full attention to ensuring that the hard work already done by those before me, especially that of President McClain and his system team, the campus chancellors, and many others will be honored as important building blocks for the future."

Greenwood was selected after an extensive and rigorous search process that began with the appointment of a 12-member search committee of faculty, staff, students, business leaders and community members in October 2008. With the assistance of search firm Storbeck/Pimentel & Associates, the committee spent nearly seven months soliciting input from the community and identifying and reviewing a wide range of candidates, eventually inviting three final candidates to visit University of Hawaiʻi campuses in early May.

As provost and senior vice president for academic affairs for the UC system, Greenwood‘s responsibilities included development of academic and research policy, administrative oversight of university planning and associated academic budget matters, liaison with the university-wide Academic Senate and student governments, liaison to the California Post Secondary Education Commission, development of policy in such areas as admissions and outreach, library planning and student affairs. She was also responsible for University Extension, summers sessions, the University Press and the UC Natural Reserve System.

At UC Santa Cruz, Greenwood spent eight years leading the campus through an era of transformation. During her tenure, the campus significantly increased its research volume and visibility, as well as dramatically increased its national rankings.

For more information about Greenwood, including a detailed biography and curriculum vitae, and additional background on the search process, visit www.hawaii.edu/president.

For more information, visit: http://www.hawaii.edu/president