As a child in New Jersey, Michael V. Drake had a courtside seat to the world of medicine. His father, a young doctor at the time, converted the family dining room into an office to see patients from the neighborhood. Those evening visits convinced Drake that the door to the dining room was a portal to a new world – where dreams came true and miracles happened. “I thought I’d practice medicine like my dad, with a shingle outside the house,” he says.
The Road Less Traveled
Years later, he found himself exactly where he wanted to be: at UCSF, attending to clinical duties and conducting research on glaucoma as a newly minted ophthalmologist. He loved research and also teaching. “I always liked school, so I never left,” he says. “With mentorship guidance, I became a little more involved with the broader pedagogy and education parts of our enterprise.” He shifted course and, for the next 25 years, served on the School of Medicine faculty. Then, a new challenge presented itself – one he hadn’t previously considered – becoming chancellor of UC Irvine. The move opened new doors to leadership, including the opportunity to return to UC as president in 2020. He is the first UCSF alum to serve in that role.
Expansive Leadership
Aside from six years as president of The Ohio State University after he left UC Irvine, President Drake has devoted most of his 50-year career to UC as a medical doctor, faculty member, administrator, and leader. Under his direction, UC has greatly enhanced access, opportunity, and affordability to better serve the needs of California’s increasingly diverse population. He is the only president ever to have been chosen by his peers to lead all of the following prestigious national organizations: the Association of Academic Health Centers, the Association of American Universities, the Association of Public and Land Grant Universities, and the National Collegiate Athletic Association. While he never practiced medicine with a shingle outside the house like he imagined as a boy, the dream he formed in the family dining room – providing high-quality, accessible, and affordable education and health care, particularly for vulnerable populations – defined his career at every turn.
