Appointment of C. Cindy Fan as Vice Provost for International Studies and Global Engagement

UCLA Office of the Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost

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

Dear Colleagues:

I am very pleased to announce that C. Cindy Fan has accepted my offer to become UCLA’s Vice Provost for International Studies and Global Engagement.

Since 2012, as interim vice provost for international studies, Cindy has provided strategic leadership for UCLA’s international programs and engagement. Highlights of her tenure include a Huron Consulting Group review of the UCLA International Institute; increased leadership diversity for centers and programs within the International Institute; new and diversified international partnerships across continents; the establishment of the UCLA Asia Office in Hong Kong; the creation of self-supporting programs that advance UCLA’s mission; streamlining campus communication about international activities; and fundraising and friendraising around the world on behalf of UCLA. She has also spearheaded a study abroad initiative as a key theme of The Centennial Campaign for UCLA, and created a UCLA tradition of global forums that engage our overseas alumni, parents, students and supporters.

As vice provost for international studies and global engagement, Cindy will continue the outstanding work that is already well underway, with broad responsibility for the university’s global strategy and for strategic leadership of UCLA’s International Institute and international programs. I have asked Vice Provost Fan to form a campuswide committee to advise her and to help identify priorities for UCLA’s international activities.

A member of the UCLA faculty since 1989, Cindy is professor of geography and Asian American studies. Prior to serving as interim vice provost, she was associate dean of the Division of Social Sciences, chair of the East Asian Studies interdepartmental program and chair of the Department of Asian American Studies. She is internationally known for her research on migration and regional development in China, has received major grants from the National Science Foundation and Henry Luce Foundation, has published numerous articles and has co-edited two international, interdisciplinary journals: Regional Studies and Eurasian Geography and Economics. Her book China on the Move: Migration, the State, and the Household (2008) is a pioneering study of migration and split households. A regular commentator for The New York Times, she has been frequently interviewed by the media, including the BBC, China Radio International, NPR, Tavis Smiley and Bloomberg, and has given keynotes throughout Europe, Asia, Australia and the U.S. She is the recipient of a UCLA Distinguished Teaching Award, an Andrew W. Mellon Foundation grant and an American Council on Education Fellowship.

Prior to asking Cindy to become the vice provost for international studies and global engagement, I asked a working group chaired by Dean Marcelo Suárez-Orozco to advise me on this appointment. Following consultations with deans, faculty and others, the committee concluded, “[Cindy] has the skills and support to lead international studies at UCLA and to ensure that international education and research fulfill their potential as core endeavors at UCLA.” I heartily agree. Please join me in congratulating Cindy and supporting her efforts to further enhance and extend UCLA’s international programs and global engagement.

Sincerely,

Scott L. Waugh
Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost