APLU Announces UC Davis Chancellor Gary S. May as Board Chair

Washington, DC – The Association of Public and Land-grant Universities (APLU) today announced University of California, Davis Chancellor Gary S. May as the new Chair of its Board of Directors. May succeeds Rebecca Blank, who resigned as chair after recently leaving her position as chancellor of the University of Wisconsin-Madison to become president of Northwestern University in July. May will serve in the role until November 13, 2023.

The Board of Directors provides oversight and direction for APLU’s work and is charged with setting membership and governing policies for the association. Board members work to make public institutions of higher education more effective in driving equitable student success, fostering research and innovation to meet societal needs, and building prosperous, equitable, and vibrant communities locally and globally.

“We’re very pleased to have Gary May as chair of the APLU Board of Directors,” said APLU President Peter McPherson. “Chancellor May is an exceptional public university leader and brings deep experience advancing the positive impact of public universities to serve all communities. As he takes the helm of the APLU Board, we’re excited to have his leadership as the association works to promote equitable student success, cutting-edge research, and prosperous communities.”

“I’m honored to step into this role and represent higher education leaders in service to APLU’s mission,” May said. “I’m looking forward to working with the Board of Directors to improve opportunities for student access and success, interdisciplinary research, economic development and public engagement across all of APLU’s member institutions.”