Contents

A. University Policy

The UC Policy on Endowed Chairs and Professorships (Policy) recognizes the desire of donors to support a wide variety of academic and research activities through the creation of endowed funds to support the University’s mission and authorizes the establishment of endowed chairs and professorships to provide recognition for the distinguished achievements of faculty.

B. Definitions

C. Responsibilities / Authority

1. Establishment, naming, and disestablishment of an Endowed Chair is subject to approval by the President upon recommendation of the Chancellor. No commitment for establishing and naming a chair shall be made to a prospective donor prior to Presidential approval.
2. The Chancellor has final approval authority for appointment to an Endowed Chair. If the proposed salary is above the Regental threshold, exceptional approval is required from the President, in accordance with Guidelines for Above-Threshold Salary Approval for Academic Appointees.

D. Procedures

1. Establishment and Naming of Endowed Chairs
   1. Establishment of the Funding

      Establishment of funding will be done in accordance with Section B. of Policy, including:

      1. An Endowed Chair will be established only upon:
         • (1) acceptance by the Chancellor of:
            
           • cash or a binding pledge that immediately or within a reasonable period of time will create a Minimum Funding Level sufficient to provide income adequate for meeting the purposes of the chair; or
            
           • a legally binding commitment (approved by the Treasurer and the General Counsel and the President) to provide appropriate income at the end of each fiscal year from an equivalent Minimum Funding Level held inviolate by a trustee;
             
             and
         • (2) approval by the President, who is authorized to approve all Endowed Chairs.
      2. The Endowed Chair and the payout from its endowment will be used for the designated area of study for as long as that area is a part of UCI's academic program. The terms of acceptance of a gift should include provisions permitting the alternative University uses of payout during the period prior to full funding of the endowment or when the chair is vacant; and the reallocation to alternative University uses if the Minimum Funding Level is not ultimately realized or if the subject area ceases to be consistent with the University’s mission and the academic plan of the campus. Suggested language to include statements that should the designated area of study no longer be a part of UCI's academic program, the income from the endowment will be used to support a chair in an area related as closely as possible to the original.
   2. Name

      The naming process for an Endowed Chair is included in the University Policy and Procedures on Naming University Properties, Programs, and Facilities. Provided the honoree (or the honoree’s family if the honoree is deceased) is in agreement with the name, per UC policy, a chair may be named in honor of the donor or other honoree, including a current active faculty member, designated by the donor, subject to approval of the President.

   3. Campus Review

      The Chancellor, in consultation with the Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor and the Vice Chancellor-University Advancement, will review proposals concerning establishment of an Endowed Chair. Before an Action Item for the Establishment and Naming of the Endowed Chair or Professorship is forwarded to the President, the Vice Chancellor-University Advancement is responsible for ensuring that the Irvine Division of the Academic Senate is consulted in keeping with its internal policies and procedures. In addition, the Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor will consult as necessary with the appropriate department chair(s) and/or dean(s).

2. Appointment to Endowed Chairs
   1. An Endowed Chair may be filled by one individual for an indefinite period (i.e., the duration of the individual's tenure), or successively by a series of individuals appointed for prescribed periods, unless otherwise provided in the terms of the gift.
   2. Search Procedures

      In carrying out the search for candidates, attention shall be paid to ensure that the process is open, transparent, and consistent with the campus affirmative action goals, policies and commitment to inclusive excellence.

      1. If the choice is for appointment of a faculty member who is already a member of the UC ladder rank faculty, the Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor will forward the recommendation to the Council on Academic Personnel for review and advice before making a recommendation to the Chancellor.
      2. If the choice is for appointment of a faculty member who does not already hold a ladder rank appointment, the School will forward the selected candidate's dossier, along with the required documentation, for regular review and recommendation of the professorial appointment and nomination. The appointment will then follow all normal review procedures, including review by the Council on Academic Personnel, before decision by the Chancellor. The Council on Academic Personnel will be asked to comment separately in the review on the level of the appointment and on the suitability of the person to hold the position of Endowed Chair.
      3. Appropriate modification of these appointment procedures may be required for Endowed Chairs with unusual characteristics (such as rotating visiting chairs, in particular). Normally, such procedures will be outlined in the proposal for such Endowed Chairs.
3. Use of Endowment Payout

   Per Policy, fund payout is defined as the dollar amount for current expenditure made available from an endowment held by The Regents or the Campus Foundation, or from an annual administrative allocation.

   1. Fund payout is provided to holders of Endowed Chairs to support teaching, research, and service activities of a chair holder. In addition, fund payout may be used to support the base salary and/or other salary components of a chair holder, unless prohibited by the gift instrument (see also “e” below). Expenditures shall be made in accordance with the gift or administrative allocation terms, according to a budget recommended annually by the chair holder to the Department Chair and approved by the appropriate campus administrator in the normal budgetary process, except as specified below for administrative Endowed Chairs.
   2. Consistent with the foregoing, and following consultation with the appropriate campus administrator (Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor, dean, or chair) or counsel, the Chancellor may approve a chair holder’s proposal to allocate a portion of the fund payout for support of the academic endeavors of the department or campus for a specified period, consistent with gift terms.
   3. Fund payout is provided to holders of administrative Endowed Chairs to support the teaching, research, and service activities of the department, research unit, school, or college. The administrative chair holder shall determine use of the payout according to a budget approved annually by the appropriate campus administrator (Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor or dean) in the normal budgetary process.
   4. At least every five years the Vice Chancellor-University Advancement shall review the terms of the fund and make recommendations of any necessary actions to the Chancellor to ensure that the University is fulfilling its legal obligation to utilize chair payouts fully in a manner consistent with the gift instrument.
   5. Unless expressly prohibited by the gift instrument, fund payout may be used to support the base salary, or a portion of the base salary, of a chair holder. Base salary is defined as salary paid to a faculty member for their teaching, research, service, and other University duties during the course of the year. The use of endowment payout to support the base salary must be made in accordance with Policy and campus procedures.
   6. The payout from a chair endowment may also be used to support other salary components, for example, the off-scale component of salary, sabbatical supplement, summer salary of the chair holder, or additional compensation under an approved compensation plan, in accordance with applicable policies, Irvine delegation of authorities or other additional compensation permitted by Policy.

E. Reviews and Reporting

1. The Vice Chancellor-University Advancement is responsible for reviewing:
   1. Any chair whose endowment has not reached full funding either by the end of the specified pledge period or the maturity of the deferred gift or bequest;
   2. Any Endowed Chairs that remain vacant for a consecutive period of three years to:
      1. ensure that the University meets its legal obligation under California trust law to fulfill the terms of the gift and to expend endowment payouts consistent with those terms; and/or
      2. in the event that the chair’s accumulated income exceeds five years of payout, review the fund’s terms and administrative history to ascertain the reason for the accumulation and recommend corrective action consistent with the terms of the gift instrument or consistent with the terms of the administrative allocation;
   3. All terms of the fund every five years and recommend the necessary actions to ensure that the University is fulfilling its legal obligation to utilize chair payouts fully in a manner consistent with the gift instrument.
2. Each chair holder shall annually submit, to the department chair and University Advancement, a brief narrative describing their academic activities and the use of endowment funds which contributed to them. These narratives should be retained by the chair or dean for use in preparing special reports on Endowed Chairs that may be needed from time to time.
3. The Vice Chancellor-University Advancement shall prepare an annual report, per Policy for the Chancellor to provide to Office of the President.

F. Disestablishment

Per Policy, the Chancellor (with the concurrence of General Counsel) may propose to the President the disestablishment of a chair and the reallocation of the endowed fund (in consultation with, and with the approval of, donor(s) if possible or if that is not possible, their representatives if practicable), under the following circumstances:

• An Endowed Chair whose fund has not reached Minimum Funding Level either by the end of the specified pledge period or the maturity of the deferred gift or bequest;
• The subject area ceases to be consistent with the University’s mission and the academic plan of the campus as determined by the Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor; or
• The Endowed Chair remains vacant for a period of three years and the Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor, after consultation with the appropriate Dean and the Department Chair, determines there is no likelihood of filling the chair.