Edhat Staff
University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB) Chancellor Henry T. Yang announced his decision to step down from his role at the end of the 2024 academic year on Wednesday.
After three decades of service and at the age of 83, Chancellor Yang stated he plans to return to his roots in teaching, research, and service as a professor.
Under Yang’s leadership since 1994, UC Santa Barbara has seen significant growth in its stature, achieving high rankings among public universities and becoming a member of the prestigious Association of American Universities. Additionally, Yang’s tenure is marked by successes in diversity, with UCSB being recognized as the first Hispanic-Serving Institution in the AAU.
In a heartfelt message to the UC Santa Barbara community, Yang expressed his deepest gratitude for the collaborative spirit of the faculty, staff, students, and supporters that enabled the university to flourish. “I want to proudly thank each of you – for your partnership, support, and guidance as we have worked together to enhance our campus,” Yang stated.
Yang’s commitment to the UCSB community extended beyond administrative duties. He and his wife, Dilling Yang, have been active participants in campus life, fostering a sense of family among students and staff. The Chancellor highlighted several initiatives, including the Chancellor’s Regional Receptions program and the establishment of the Dilling Yang Staff Scholarship, aimed at advancing the careers of UCSB’s staff members and promoting diversity among the student body.
Throughout his tenure, Yang, who earns an annual salary of $580,000 plus housing accommodations, has overseen the university’s financial and academic growth, with the annual fundraising totals reaching $167 million and research grants increasing to $267.2 million. The campus has also been adorned with accolades, including six Nobel Prizes among its faculty and alumni.
Despite his impending departure, Yang remains focused on the future, outlining goals for his final year in office that include long-range development planning, faculty and staff recruitment, and student housing improvement.
Chancellor Yang’s impact on UC Santa Barbara is immeasurable, leaving a legacy of excellence, diversity, and community engagement. As he prepares to pass the torch, his message to the campus community is one of optimism and gratitude.
“Serving as the Chancellor of UC Santa Barbara has been the highest honor of my career,” said Yang. “I look forward to returning to the classroom and lab after this academic year, and continuing to support our unparalleled community of students, faculty, and staff to the best of my abilities.”
UC Santa Barbara will soon begin the search for a new chancellor who can build on Yang’s exceptional legacy and guide the university into its next chapter.
Yang’s full letter can be viewed below:
Dear Members of Our Campus Community,
It is with the greatest honor and appreciation that I write to share that I have decided to step down as Chancellor at the end of the coming academic year and return to teaching, research, and service as a professor.
I want to proudly thank each of you – our faculty, staff, students, administrators, alumni, parents, trustees, friends, and supporters – for your partnership, support, and guidance as we have worked together to advance our campus to where we are today.
I also want to express my gratitude for the support and leadership of President Drake and former Presidents at UCOP, as well as all of the UC Regents, for supporting me and our campus throughout my tenure.
I especially want to thank my wife, Dilling, for her role as Associate of the Chancellor, selflessly supporting our community without compensation twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. She has been tirelessly helping to host every trustees meeting, helping students move in every fall, and participating in the life of the campus in every way. As an example, we started the Chancellor’s Regional Receptions program to travel to major cities around the state, Central Valley, Midwest, and East Coast to recruit admitted students with diversity and excellence. As a volunteer, Dilling has worked devotedly with our hardworking and highly committed staff, faculty, students, and alumni for all 136 receptions over the years. She has also established the Dilling Yang Staff Scholarship to help advance the careers of our staff colleagues.
Dilling and I have such pleasure in talking with students, staff, faculty, and visitors during our daily walks on campus and, on weekends, seeing students and sometimes taking selfies together in Isla Vista. We have shared so much joy with students during happy and festive times, and also shared our grief during a few tragic and painful times. We have been crying, hugging, healing, hoping, and smiling together.
I remember that during my first year on campus, I invited all faculty members to one hundred lunches, eight faculty members per lunch, within the first year. I sought advice to find a shared vision, which has since guided me and the direction of the campus to where we are today. Another series of lunch meetings, which were halted during the pandemic, laid the foundation for our award-winning classroom building with 2,000 seats for interactive learning.
It has been such a wonderful journey of life to serve and work with you to advance our campus, with the highest stature of excellence, diversity, and significant access to our campus. We have all benefited from thorough consultation and consensus building on campus matters.
Our faculty have won so many accolades, awards, and honors across all disciplines, including, for example, six Nobel Prizes (plus one more to our alumna), National Medals, the Pulitzer Prize, and many more. Our campus has ranked as high as #5 among all public universities in the country by both U.S News and Forbes Magazine in recent years, with parallel high rankings in the Diversity Index. We have been a member of the Association of American Universities (AAU), and also been recognized as the first Hispanic-Serving Institution of AAU. Our annual fundraising totals have reached $167 million this past year, up from $10.5 million when I started. Our annual research grants have increased from $81.2 million to $267.2 million last year.
Even with this progress, there remains much more to accomplish in the year ahead. I look forward to working collaboratively on a long list, such as planning for our next long-range development plan and capital campaign, several philanthropic buildings, ongoing recruitment and retention of faculty and staff, student and workforce housing, campus climate, Isla Vista improvements, increased access for students from diverse backgrounds, and much more.
In addition to my administrative service, I have always loved teaching and research, and have been able to teach in person at least one course every year. It was very meaningful to me to receive an Honorary Distinguished Teaching Award from the Academic Senate. I have guided 57 PhD theses (including 12 from UCSB), all funded by NSF, NASA, and federal funding agencies, and have authored and co-authored 195 journal papers and a textbook.
Serving as the Chancellor of UC Santa Barbara has been the highest honor of my career. I look forward to returning to the classroom and lab after this academic year, and continuing to support our unparalleled community of students, faculty, and staff to the best of my abilities.
Go Gauchos!
With all my heartfelt thankfulness,
Henry T. Yang
Chancellor
$580k salary PLUS free housing and whatever other undisclosed benefits he’s been receiving. Yet families are taking out second mortgages and students are in debt for 30 years to get an education. Our country’s values are out of whack.
Chancellor Yang’s retirement is being celebrated, but it’s troubling that the narrative ignores the glaring failures of his tenure. His silence on the housing crisis, despite UCSB’s role in worsening it, and the disastrous Dormzilla project highlight a legacy tarnished by neglect and broken promises. Yang’s failure to address the urgent need for student housing has left lasting damage on the community, and it’s a disservice to gloss over these serious faults in his leadership. Good riddance, Chancellor Yang, and I hope they replace him with a more engaging, community-oriented leader.
Yeah 100%, that’s the #1 problem I have with his tenure – not accommodating his students’ housing while he strove AND SUCCEEDED to expand the student population and the overall size of the University. And true that – he’s been absolutely disengaged with his surrounding IV-Goleta-SB community. Good time to move on.
Right. I always say him at the fancy Bacara and Biltmore events hob nobbing it up, but not so much mingling with the students on campus. Unless he was hitting them with his car, ha!
He should have stepped down a decade ago. Much like our politicians, 83 is too old to have this much unchecked power.
Article also failed to mention Yang’s hit and run cover up. He hit a skateboarder with his car in 2022 and fled the scene. Skateboarder and lawyer reached out to media then quickly clammed up as it seemed he was paid off and UC Police and UCSB buried the incident. I’m assuming that kid graduated debt free and that’s why the story didn’t gain much traction
https://www.edhat.com/news/ucsb-chancellor-investigated-for-on-campus-hit-and-run/
And don’t forget about Yang’s wife also hitting a skateboarder this year. At least she stayed on the scene and didn’t drive home and hide, refusing to cooperate with police.
https://keyt.com/news/santa-barbara-s-county/2024/05/21/ucsb-chancellors-wife-possibly-involved-in-vehicle-accident-tuesday/
Living and working in IV for 30 years and NOT hitting a student with your car at some point would be an accomplishment in and of itself.
Sure, but most of us don’t have the luxury of committing a hit and run and having UCSB and the UCPD cover it up and pay off the victim.
How about the big Thirty Meter Telescope controversy he was in the middle of in Hawaii. Yang was the chairman of TMT’s board of governors and the UC pledged $300 million to build the telescope.
Glad he is leaving. This is past due. He was a weak and compromised leader. Mostly interested in risk avoidance and fund raising.
Yang took UCSB from a famous party school to being in the top 5 universities in the country. Yang and his wonderful wife Dilling care about students and often go through campus to get to know students and hear students stories. They leave big shoes to fill.
Yang seems to like students and faculty. He has less regard for the mid- and low-level staff employees.