Campus News
College academic leadership update
College academic leadership updates include new provost appointments and a pilot model pairing colleges under five full-time provosts starting July 1, 2026.
Dear Colleagues,
I’m excited to share an update regarding academic leadership in the colleges and to announce new provost appointments.
UC Santa Cruz was founded on a college system that integrates living and learning. The colleges remain central to the undergraduate experience, connecting academics, community, and beyond-the-classroom experiences while helping students build a strong sense of belonging and a foundation for academic exploration and personal growth.
Effective July 1, 2026, the colleges will pilot a model of five full-time provosts overseeing five college pairings for three-year terms. This is an expansion of the current two-college-per-provost model currently at College Nine and John R. Lewis College and at Stevenson and Cowell Colleges. This model strengthens academic leadership and supports greater coordination of academic initiatives, while maintaining the distinct identity, traditions, and mission of each college built by generations of provosts, faculty, students, and alumni. Students’ college affiliations are not changing.
Together, these five academic leaders are well-positioned to guide a broader dialogue on students’ academic journeys and represent a significant investment in academic leadership supporting the undergraduate experience at UC Santa Cruz.
The provost and college pairings will be:
- Mayanthi Fernando: Oakes College and Rachel Carson College
- Kim Lau: College College Nine and John R. Lewis College
- Aims McGuinness: Crown College and Merrill College
- Soraya Murray: Kresge College and Porter College
- Matt O’Hara: Cowell College and Stevenson College
I appreciate these colleagues’ willingness to take on this expanded academic leadership role and their continued commitment to students and the academic mission of UC Santa Cruz and its colleges.
During the pilot and in consultation with the Academic Senate and campus leaders, the campus community will have the opportunity to provide feedback on how the model is working.
I am deeply grateful to the three provosts whose terms will end on June 30, 2026, for their leadership and for the many ways they have shaped and strengthened the intellectual and community life of their colleges.
Sincerely,
Richard Hughey
Vice Provost and Dean of Undergraduate Education and Global Engagement