In the last five years, the number of undergraduate students from underrepresented minorities has increased by 59.1 percent. Sixty percent of the Class of 2017 incoming freshmen were the first in their family to attend a four-year institution, and forty percent hailed from low-income households, both of which are among the highest in the country.
The propagation of principles has become a hallmark of the UC Irvine experience, thanks to Chancellor Drake. Respect, intellectual curiosity, integrity, commitment, empathy, appreciation, and fun, which he proposed at the time of his appointment, have become critical components of fostering the creative process, strengthening interpersonal bonds, and inspiring a shared sense of purpose among faculty, staff, and students.
The "Living Our Values" awards are given out each spring to members of the UC Irvine community who have exhibited values-based decision-making in exceptionally tough or demanding situations. Chancellor Drake has overseen the establishment of new public health, pharmaceutical sciences, and nursing science programs, all of which are already producing highly qualified healthcare workers to address the community's essential needs.
In 2006, he managed the establishment of California's first new public law school in more than 40 years. In July 2012, the University of California, Irvine, founded the UC Irvine School of Education.
More than 5 million square feet of additional space has been added to the campus under his leadership, including the 500,000-square-foot UC Irvine Douglas Hospital and the 275,000-square-foot Student Center, two of the more than 30 major building projects completed on time and on budget.
The campus's physical environment has garnered national recognition for its environmental efficiency, with 11 buildings earning LEED Platinum accreditation, the highest attainable rating. In 2012 and 2013, the University of California, Irvine has named the best university in the United States – and one of the top five in the world – for students under the age of 50.
It is the Association of American Universities' newest member. Prior to his arrival at UC Irvine, Chancellor Drake worked as the University of California system's vice president for health affairs for five years, supervising academic program policy across the university's 15 health sciences schools, which are spread across seven campuses.
He co-chaired the California/Mexico Health Effort, established the PRIME (PRogram In Medical Education) initiative to teach physicians to care for underprivileged communities statewide, and oversaw the special research programs in tobacco, breast cancer, and HIV/AIDS.
He spent more than two decades on the faculty at the University of California, San Francisco School of Medicine, eventually rising to become the Steven P. Shearing Professor of Ophthalmology and senior associate dean. He's worked as an administrator, teacher, and physician-scientist, undertaking glaucoma clinical research and managing a busy referral practice.
He has authored several scientific papers and chapters, as well as his sixth textbook, which was released in 2009. Chancellor Drake is a fellow of the Institute of Medicine (National Academies) and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and a graduate of Stanford University (A.B.) and UC San Francisco (M.D.).
The Burbridge Award for Public Service, the Asbury Award (clinical science), the Michael J. Hogan Award (laboratory science), the UCSF School of Medicine Clinical Teaching Award, the S.J.
Kimura Teaching Award, the UCSF School of Medicine Alumnus of the Year Award, and the Gold-Headed Cane Society Speaker's Cane are among the many honors and awards he has received for teaching, public service, and research. He also won the Herbert W.
Nickens Award for supporting social justice from the Association of American Medical Colleges and the California Wellness Foundation's Champion of Diversity Award. At the 18th International HIV/AIDS Conference, he received the first Binational Health Pioneer Award. In 2009, he was honored in the Multicultural Hall of Fame at Stanford University.
Chancellor Drake has served as president and trustee of the Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society, as well as head of the Association of Academic Health Centers' board of trustees. He is now a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association's executive committee and Division I board, as well as the Association of American Universities' executive and membership committees.
