Michael Vincent Drake academically known as Michael V Drake is an American physician, co-author, and the 21st president of the University of California system. He was born in New York and grew up in Englewood, New Jersey and Sacramento, California. His mother was a social worker and his father was a psychiatrist. While in college, he was very passionate about music and worked at the original Tower Records during his summers.
Best known for his academic career, Michael V Drake received his A.B. from Stanford University and his M.D. in Ophthalmology from the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF). He became a professor at UCSF, served as Vice Chair for the Department of Ophthalmology, and became the Vice President for Health Affairs for the University of California from 2000-2005.
Michael V Drake did not stop there. He went on to become the 5th chancellor of the University of California Irvine (UCI) from 2005-2014 and served as Ohio State University’s 15th president from 2014-2020, during which he had a successfully high graduation rate.
Michael V Drake has published multiple articles, co-authored six books, including the diagnosis of glaucoma, and received various awards for research and teaching. We can’t wait to see what Dr. Drake will do next for the University of California, serving as president of its 152-year history.
Michael V Drake’s Black Moments:
- First Black president of the University of California
- Inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame
- Recipient of the Martin Luther King Jr. Award
- Served as Steven P. Shearing Professor of Ophthalmology
- Awarded the University of California Presidential Medal
- Awarded the Multicultural Alumni Hall of Fame
Related Black Moments: Michael Tubbs