Larry N. Vanderhoef was appointed chancellor of the University of California, Davis, in April 1994. UC Davis, with some 30,000 students, is one of 10 UC campuses and one of a select group of 62 North American universities admitted to membership in the prestigious Association of American Universities (AAU).

He joined the campus in 1984 as executive vice chancellor and provost.  During his tenure as chancellor, the campus was invited to membership in the AAU; increased its extramural awards from $169.1 million to $622 million annually, earning a National Science Foundation (NSF) research funding ranking of 10th in the U.S. among public universities; increased private gifts from $40 million to more than $200 million a year; raised more than $600 million of the $1 billion goal of the current “Campaign for UC Davis” before he retired; expanded classroom, laboratory, clinical and office space by 6 million square feet; completed the transformation of an ailing county hospital to an academically distinguished and financially sound regional medical center; and made distinctive strides in recruiting a diverse and accomplished faculty and student body.  Student enrollment grew from 22,000 to more than 30,000, and the faculty increased by 44 percent.

Chancellor Vanderhoef was honored by the Sacramento (California) Business Journal as one of the 20 people who have contributed most substantially to California’s capital region over the past 20 years, and Valley Vision presented him with its 2009 Legacy of Leadership Award.  As well, the Sacramento Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce named him Sacramentan of the Year in 2004, and the Arts and Business Council of Sacramento presented him with its Prelude to the Season Outstanding Contribution Award in 2003.

The 2006 Northern California International Leadership Award was presented to him by the Northern California World Trade Center and the California Business, Transportation and Housing Agency in recognition of his efforts to increase the campus’s international engagement.  Also that year, he was elected an honorary member of the World Innovation Foundation.

In 2004 he led a UC Davis delegation to Iran in an effort to promote dialogue and scholar exchange, and to promote generally the notion of crossing boundaries to build greater understanding and good will – a continuing personal and professional effort.  He returned to Iran in November 2008 as part of a small delegation of AAU presidents.  In 2009 he was awarded the Outstanding Community Award by the Sacramento Valley Chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations.

Chancellor Vanderhoef has served on various national commissions addressing graduate and international education, the role of a modern land-grant university and accrediting issues.  He holds B.S. and M.S. degrees in biology from the University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, and a Ph.D. in plant biochemistry from Purdue University. Previously, he held faculty positions at the University of Illinois, where he also served as a department head, and at the University of Maryland, College Park, where he was appointed provost. Early in his career, he was named an Eisenhower Fellow, a recognition awarded to emerging leaders from around the world to promote positive relationships and interactions between countries.  He was awarded honorary doctoral degrees by Purdue University and by Inje University in Korea, and an honorary professorship of China Agricultural University.

Since retirement Larry Vanderhoef’s interests continue to have university links.  Though retired from the Chancellor’s position, Larry is still very much involved in activities on behalf of the campus:

• He has developed a new course, Biology for Non-Science Majors, and taught it for the first time in Spring, 2011.
• He served as chair of the five-person panel appointed by the California Public Utilities Commission to investigate the tragic San Bruno gas explosion and fire that killed eight people and destroyed 38 homes in September 2010.
• Nominated by Senator Dianne Feinstein, he is serving on the primary advisory panel, National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity, to the U.S. Secretary of Education, Arne Duncan.
• He serves on the Habitat for Humanity Board in Yolo County, and on advisory boards for the Mondavi Center and the School of Education.
• He is also continuing his involvement in international programs, concentrating on work with Taiwan and Iran.
• As well, he is working on a book tentatively titled “Chapters Along the Way,” a compilation of thirty-plus unique experiences Larry had during his 25 years as provost and chancellor.

And finally, Larry enjoys an occasional game of squash and regular visits to the ARC for workouts.

Larry and his wife, Rosalie, traveled the road described above together, sharing the experiences as a team.  They have two children, one in Northern California and one in New York.  The Vanderhoefs moved from the Chancellor’s Residence back into the Davis home they purchased when they first moved to California in 1984.  They have renovated their home and intend to stay in Davis.  They have frequently visited particular areas in Northern California over the past 25 years – Lake Tahoe, Monterey, San Francisco, Yosemite, Bodega Bay, etc., and can’t quite imagine that there is any place else that could match it all.