Appointment of C. Cindy Fan as Interim Vice Provost for International Studies

UCLA Office of the Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost

To: Administrative Officers, Deans, Department Chairs, Directors, Faculty, International Institute Staff, Vice Chancellors and Vice Provosts

Dear Colleagues:

I am pleased to announce that Professor C. Cindy Fan has accepted an offer from Chancellor Block and me to serve as Interim Vice Provost for International Studies, effective January 1, 2012. In this role, she will also direct the International Institute.

A member of the UCLA faculty since 1989, Dr. Fan is professor of geography and Asian American studies, and she is affiliated with the International Institute’s Center for Chinese Studies and Global Studies interdepartmental program. In addition to her scholarship, she has had extensive leadership and administrative experience through her service as associate dean of Social Sciences, director of the Social Science Education in Asia program, chair of the East Asian Studies interdepartmental program, and chair of the Asian American Studies department.

Professor Fan’s research focuses on labor migration, marriage migration, spatial and social inequality, gender and cities in China. She recently completed a five-year project funded by the National Science Foundation. She is internationally known for her research on the household organization of rural-urban migrants in China, which is based on large-scale surveys and field work. She contributes regularly to The New York Times and other media outlets in the U.S., Europe and Asia. Frequently invited to give keynotes, she will soon speak at a conference in Thailand about UCLA’s efforts to cultivate global citizens. Professor Fan has been a co-editor of two international and interdisciplinary journals: Regional Studies and Eurasian Geography and Economics. A well-regarded and popular teacher, Professor Fan received the C. Doris and Toshio Hoshide Distinguished Teaching Prize in Asian American Studies last year. She has collaborated with scholars from a range of disciplines in Europe, Asia and Australia, and has served as a visiting professor at Beijing Normal University.

Given the paramount importance of international education and engagement to UCLA, Chancellor Block and I are very pleased and grateful that Professor Fan has agreed to serve as interim vice provost for three and a half years, through June 30, 2015. This will enable our campus to sharpen our international goals and strategies, review our organizational structure and more clearly define the role of the International Institute. She will also work closely with External Affairs as we prepare for UCLA’s centennial campaign. We expect to begin a search for a permanent vice provost in 2014.

I would like to thank the members of the advisory committee who reviewed nominations and met with candidates for the interim vice provost position. The committee was chaired by Sherry Ortner, distinguished professor of anthropology. Other committee members were John Agnew, distinguished professor of geography; Andrew Apter, professor of history; Susanna Hecht, professor of urban planning; and Min Zhou, professor of sociology and Asian American studies.

I also want to take this opportunity to convey our deep appreciation to Professor Randal Johnson for his service as Interim Vice Provost for International Studies during the past 18 months. Under his leadership, UCLA forged many new international relationships and initiated significant improvements to our international educational programs. His contributions will be of lasting value to UCLA students and faculty.

Please join me in congratulating Professor Fan and welcoming her to this important role.

Sincerely,

Scott L. Waugh
Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost