UCLA Chancellor Albert Carnesale may be leaving his post as the
head of the university, but he plans to return to UCLA as a faculty
member and sit on the FBI’s National Security Higher
Education Advisory Board.
Carnesale has also been appointed as a member of the Board of
Directors of the local media group Westwood One and will be taking
time away from UCLA for a one-year sabbatical beginning in June
2006.
The FBI advisory board, which is composed of leaders from
well-known universities across the nation, aims to create a better
understanding between the FBI and higher educational leaders with
regard to academic freedom and privacy.
In a telephone interview, Carnesale said his personal goal as a
member of the board is to ensure that all students in U.S.
universities have equal opportunities in higher education, which is
something he has strived for at UCLA.
The open atmosphere at UCLA is an idea that Carnesale said he
hopes to bring to the advisory board, which meets several times
throughout the year.
The board aims to clarify certain policy issues relating to
international issues in education.
“As we do our work, we wish to be sensitive to university
concerns about international students, visas, technology export
policy, and the special culture of colleges and
universities,’ said FBI Director Robert Mueller III in a
statement.
The goal of the advisory board involves ways to keep the open
atmosphere at universities without compromising national security,
he said.
The chancellor’s background in foreign relations and
international affairs makes him well-qualified for the role on the
advisory board, said Assistant Vice Chancellor of University
Communications Lawrence Lokman.
The position on the advisory board will not be the first time
Carnesale has been involved in the government.
In the past, Carnesale has worked as an adviser to the
Department of Defense and to the director of the CIA.
The FBI advisory position is only one of the various pursuits
that Carnesale plans to become involved in after his departure from
UCLA.
Carnesale will also be working as a member of the Board of
Directors of Westwood One, a group that provides local information
such as news, music, and features to local radio and television
industries.
“Westwood One is a leader in the media industry, and I
look forward to helping Westwood continue to achieve its goals and
maintain its leadership position in the future,” he said.
Shane Coppola, the President and CEO of Westwood One, also said
he thought the company would benefit from Carnesale’s
involvement.
“Carnesale is a recognized and accomplished leader in his
field who possesses the highest personal and professional
integrity,” Coppola said in a statement.
Carnesale plans on returning to UCLA as a professor after his
one year sabbatical, which begins in June.
The chancellor also hopes to spend time preparing himself for
his new faculty position at UCLA.
“I’m sure that some of it will be spent away from
UCLA. Doing some traveling and some time in Washington and in other
universities,” he said.
The chancellor plans on re-immersing himself in international
affairs and spending more time engaged in public policy issues.
He said he hopes to learn more about issues that will help him
when he returns to UCLA.
Some topics of particular interest to Carnesale are bioterrorism
and social science.
“I’ll learn a lot as these are some issues that I
have not dealt with in depth before,’ said Carnesale.
For now, Lokman said Carnesale will continue to put his energy
towards his position at UCLA.
“His focus right now is on the business of the
university,” Lokman said.