Michael Rao

Michael Rao, Ph.D. is an American academic administrator and politician who is the current president of Virginia Commonwealth University, a public university in downtown Richmond, Virginia. Rao previously served as the president of Central Michigan University in Mount Pleasant, Michigan and Mission College in Santa Clara, California. Additionally, he served as the Chancellor of Montana State University–Northern.

Early life and education

Rao, the son of a physician from Mumbai, India, was born in Boston, Massachusetts. At age 8, he moved with his mother to rural Pasco County, Florida, after the early death of his father, Suresh Rao.^[2]

He received his bachelor's degree in Chemistry from the University of South Florida and his doctorate in Higher Education Administration from the University of Florida.^[3]

Academic career

Rao has been an administrator for more than 20 years. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, Rao served in the private sector as a higher education academic program planner. In this role, he created master plans for the University of Washington system and the University of California. He also served as assistant to the president at the University of Florida, a member of the Association of American Universities (AAU).^[4]

In 1992, Rao became a dean at Mission College in Santa Clara, California, and became president of the college two years later. This move gave him the distinction of being the youngest college president in the country at that time.^[5] In 1998, he became chancellor of Montana State University - Northern in Havre.

In 2000, at the age of 34, Rao was chosen to be president of Central Michigan University, a large public, research university. CMU is the fourth largest of Michigan’s 15 public universities. His work at CMU focused on interdisciplinary academic program development, economic development through commercialization of research, fundraising for the university, and outreach to the Central Michigan region.^[6] During his tenure and despite state budget cuts, CMU significantly increased faculty positions and research productivity, developed academic programs and improved performance. Under Rao’s leadership, CMU gained approval to establish a medical school and M.D. degree program, partnering with large healthcare systems.^[7] When he left CMU in 2009, Rao was one of the three longest-serving presidents among Michigan’s 15 public universities.

In 2009, Rao became president of Virginia Commonwealth University.

Some of his academic work involving phenothiazine drugs is published in the Journal of Physical Chemistry. His work continues occasionally with an analytical chemist with whom he examines properties of hyperbranched polymers designed for drug delivery.

Virginia Commonwealth University presidency

Michael Rao was selected to be the president of Virginia Commonwealth University in 2009. As president of VCU and the VCU Health System, he leads a national research university with a leading academic medical center that, with nearly 20,000 employees, is the largest employer in the Richmond area and the sixth largest in Virginia. VCU’s annual economic impact in the state is estimated at $3.6 billion and more than 43,000 jobs. VCU’s community impact, economic and cultural, was particularly evident during the Rams’ run to the Final Four in the 2011 NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship, which brought out an unparalleled display of pride from both the VCU community and the greater Richmond area. In his capacity as president of the VCU Health System, Rao heads one of the nation’s most comprehensive academic health centers, which is ranked among the best hospitals in the country as well as the No. 1 hospital in the Richmond-metro area by U.S. News & World Report.^[8]

Under Rao’s leadership, VCU’s place among national research universities continues to rise, with 28 graduate and first-professional programs ranked among the best in the nation by U.S. News & World Report. Rao continues to steer infrastructure improvements to bolster priority initiatives, such as a new medical education center for VCU’s School of Medicine, a state-of-the-art facility that enabled the school to increase class size and transform medical education.^[9]

During his tenure, VCU has been designated in the top research category by the Carnegie Foundation, which, in combination with its community engaged distinction, makes VCU one of only 28 public universities in the country with an academic medical center to achieve this prestigious dual distinction.^[10]

Also under his watch were undergraduate living/learning residential villages focused on community engagement and international themes. VCU ASPiRE opened in fall 2012, followed one year later by VCU Globe, a state-of-the-art academic building which is a technology showcase and home to VCU’s nationally ranked School of Social Work and its Center for Teaching Excellence.^[11]

In addition, Rao announced plans for the VCU Institute for Contemporary Art, which will be a signature building for the VCU School of Arts — the nation’s top-ranked public graduate arts program.^[12]

Quest for Distinction

Launched by Rao in 2011, the university’s strategic plan, Quest for Distinction, sets priorities of academic excellence; research that enhances the quality of life, human health, and well-being; and contributions to the economic vitality and cultural richness of the community. Strategic efforts focus on academic quality, student success, and research that fosters regional economic development and improves lives.^[13]

The plan rests upon four themes that outline the university’s institutional priorities, strategies and initiatives.^[14]

Theme I: Become a leader among national research universities in providing all students with high quality learning/living experiences focused on inquiry, discovery and innovation in a global environment

Theme II: Attain preeminence as an urban, public research university by making contributions in research, scholarship, creative expression and clinical practice that bring national and international recognition

Theme III: Achieve national recognition as a fully integrated research university with a commitment to human health

Theme IV: Become a national model for community engagement and regional impact

Inauguration

Michael Rao was officially installed as VCU’s fifth president on October 14, 2011 in an inauguration ceremony at the Siegel Center. The event was marked with two weeks of activities designed to highlight the urban university's commitment to student success, academic excellence, research and human health. VCU hosted a Presidential Inauguration Research Lecture Series, a university-wide food drive, and events highlighting VCU’s commitment to sustainability. VCU also launched a new tradition recognizing the inaugural class of “University Scholars,” undergraduate students who have completed 54-84 credits and have attained outstanding academic achievement.^[15]

U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan was the event’s keynote speaker. He praised VCU’s achievements and urged the university to build on its successes, saying, “Through a combination of scholarship, research and creativity, VCU has become a leading example of how an urban university can be both a center of learning and a center of the community. My challenge today to President Rao, to the faculty and to the students is this: Build on what VCU is right now to become a world-class university that leads your state and our nation.”^[16]

In his inaugural address, Rao pointed to VCU’s past as a source of inspiration, and issued a challenge for its future, stating, “We will be exceptional. We will solve problems. We will find the answers our state, our nation and the world so desperately need. It won’t be about lofty abstractions. It will be about the immediate and intense needs of people.”^[17]

In December 2011, VCU extended Michael Rao’s contract through June 30, 2017, with automatic renewals allowing for a possible extension until 2020.^[18]

Annual Salary at VCU: $523,281

Controversies

http://www.richmond.com/news/local/education/article_60fadd46-2b92-5405-a4a0-529b2598fa27.html

“Why don’t you find funding from your own personal salaries — $500,000 for a president?” Adam Ryan, a senior, said in a reference to VCU President Michael Rao’s salary. The board last month raised Rao’s base pay by 4 percent to $523,281 annually, retroactive to the July 1 start of the fiscal year.

“Maybe we are,” Rao responded.

Personal life

Rao is married to Monica Rao, a professional watercolorist and graphic designer. They have two sons, Miguel and Aiden.

Monica Rao is a graduate of Nirmala Niketan Polytechnic Institute in India with a diploma in commercial art/design. She has also received a bachelor’s in art/graphic design with a minor in business administration and a master’s in leadership from Central Michigan University.^[19]

Board service

• Greater Richmond Chamber of Commerce
• Venture Richmond
• The Coalition of Urban Serving Universities - Steering Committee on Improving the Health of a Diverse Population
• Association of Public and Land-Grant Universities - Council of Presidents
• Association of Governing Boards
• Center for Innovative Technology – Board of Directors
• American Heart Association HeartBall 2013 – Co-chair
• Northern Virginia Technology Council - Senior Advisory Board

References

External links

• Profile as president of Central Michigan University
• VCU Installs Michael Rao as its Fifth President
• Project Beauty: VCU's Institute for Contemporary Art
• Rao: Thank you, Richmond, for supporting VCU
• Greater Richmond Chamber of Commerce Partner and Trustees Luncheon
• State of the University Address
• 2013 Faculty Convocation