The University of California Board of Regents on Thursday approved the appointment of Dr. Dennis Assanis as chancellor of UC Santa Barbara, setting an annual base salary of $880,000 and listing an effective start date on or about Sept. 1, 2025. The appointment was moved by Lieutenant Governor Eleni Kounalakis and approved by roll call.

The action follows a nationwide search and campus input collected by the search advisory committee, which the regents said led them to Assanis, who has served as president of the University of Delaware since February 2016. In remarks read to the board, President Michael Drake said he and President-designate Mike Mills concur that Assanis is “the best person to shape the next chapter for UC Santa Barbara” and cited his record increasing total research expenditures at Delaware from $176,000,000 in 2016 to $466,000,000 in 2024.

The regents’ item describes the proposed $880,000 base salary as roughly the 49th percentile of the position’s market reference zone; additional compensation details were included in the board item. The regents called for a roll-call vote; the motion carried and the appointment was approved.

Assanis addressed the board and attendees after the vote, thanking the search committee, regents and university leadership and describing priorities including student success, interdisciplinary graduate and professional education, and stronger public–private partnerships to translate research into economic impact. He said UC Santa Barbara should “continue to enhance the quality of education we deliver, the graduation rates and careers of our graduates, and the lifelong learning networks and opportunities.”

Board materials presented to regents noted Assanis’s academic background: an undergraduate degree in marine engineering from Newcastle University, three master’s degrees from MIT (marine engineering, mechanical engineering, and management) and a Ph.D. in power and propulsion from MIT. The materials also summarized Assanis’s leadership at Delaware, where he led creation of a research campus and work with the National Institute for Innovation in Manufacturing Biopharmaceuticals, a public–private partnership described in the presentation as a driver of industry research on vaccines and pharmaceuticals.

The board did not amend the compensation package during the public roll call, and the motion as presented carried. The transcript shows campus and system leaders praised the hire and welcomed Assanis and his wife, Eleni; the regents recorded the vote by roll call immediately before Assanis’s remarks.

The appointment concludes the search advisory committee’s work and sets the stage for Assanis to assume campus leadership. The board’s item noted additional contract terms and benefits in the item packet; those terms were not read into the record.

(Ending) The regents’ approval finalizes the selection; Assanis’s assumption of the chancellorship is pending completion of any administrative onboarding steps and the effective date noted by the regents.