As Vice Chancellor Fred Wood begins preparations for his new role as chancellor of the University of Minnesota, Crookston, Chancellor Linda P.B. Katehi has begun the process to find his successor.

Wood, who has led Student Affairs since 2007 and whose roots at UC Davis extend to his undergraduate studies here in the 1970s, will become the chief academic and executive officer for the 1,600-student campus in Minnesota’s northwest corner. He is scheduled to start at Crookston on July 2.

Meanwhile, the chancellor held a conference call today (May 25) with more than a dozen faculty, students and administrators whom she has invited to serve on a selection advisory committee for an interim vice chancellor of Student Affairs. The interim vice chancellor will serve for a one-year period while the advisory committee conducts a national recruitment for a permanent replacement for Wood. 

“In light of his upcoming departure, we must move quickly to ensure continuity of leadership in our Student Affairs division,” Katehi’s chief of staff, Karl Engelbach, wrote in a note to the committee members.

In a campuswide call for nominations expected to be released later today, Katehi says she and the committee are looking for “an experienced academic leader from within UC Davis.” The chancellor will ask that nominations be forwarded to her office no later than June 4, and that she hopes to have the interim vice chancellor in place by July 2. Candidates must be a member of the Academic Senate and have a minimum of five years of academic administrative experience.

No stranger to Minnesota

Wood said he is excited about leading the Crookston campus, one of five in the UM system. “The University of Minnesota, Crookston, is an innovative campus that is integral to the land-grant mission of the system and has distinctive strengths in student-centered education, technology-rich learning and applied research,” he said.

Robert Jones, UM’s senior vice president for Academic Affairs, said Wood brings “outstanding administrative and academic credentials, a passion for ensuring innovative and supportive educational experiences, and a strong understanding of a multicampus system with a land-grant mission.”

For Wood, Minnesota is familiar territory: His mother was born in Crookston, about 25 miles east of Grand Forks, N.D.; one daughter graduated from Carleton College, and the other is studying at St. Olaf College, both in Northfield, Minn.

The Crookston campus’s slogan is “Small Campus. Big Degree.” It has internships in all its majors, and offers 26 degree programs, including 10 online degrees, in the areas of agriculture and natural resources; business; liberal arts and education; and math, science and technology.

From undergrad to vice chancellor

Wood will be remembered here as a beloved teacher and leader in both academic and student life roles.

His portfolio as Student Affairs vice chancellor includes Undergraduate Admissions, Intercollegiate Athletics, Campus Recreation, plus student services that include registrar, financial aid, advising, academic support, health and housing,

Working to maintain access and affordability has been a theme of his leadership both on and off campus. He has served as UC’s representative to the California Student Aid Commission since 2009, and helped lead the UC system's introduction last fall of the self-funded Student Health Insurance Program.

He received an Associate in Arts degree in physical sciences from Diablo Valley Community College, Pleasant Hill, in 1978, then transferred to UC Davis. In the 34 years since, he spent all but two years here as a student (bachelor's degree in chemistry, 1980, and doctorate in inorganic chemistry, 1984), faculty member in the Department of Chemistry, associate dean in the College of Letters and Science,  interim vice provost for Undergraduate Studies, and vice chancellor.

Magic in his career

He has mentored students, overseen major additions to student facilities, and even added some flash to campus by helping to create Picnic Day’s popular Chemistry Magic Show. He continued to teach chemistry courses or first-year seminars each year to stay connected to students and the teaching mission of the university.

“It has been an honor and a privilege to have been a student here and then to have served such a great university in so many capacities,” Wood said. “I have especially appreciated collaborating with outstanding leaders among administrators, the Academic Senate and student groups in helping to make UC Davis a better place for students.”

Wood worked closely with academic leaders on curricular changes and measures to reduce students' time to degree. As a transfer student himself, he said, it was especially meaningful to lead the creation of a center for transfer students and veterans, implement the introduction of guaranteed housing for new transfer students, and build strong connections with regional community colleges. In January, Sacramento City College opened its Davis Center at UC Davis West Village.

Wood oversaw millions of dollars in capital projects, including the construction of Tercero student housing Phase II and the Segundo Services Center, as well as major renovations to the Coffee House, the Segundo residence halls and the Cuarto Dining Commons. He said he is especially proud of helping to build the Student Community Center due to the positive impact it has had on the student community.