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The 51³Ô¹Ï±¬ÁÏÍø Cal Aggie Alumni Association has named a former United States deputy secretary of agriculture to the 51³Ô¹Ï±¬ÁÏÍø Board of Regents. Richard E. Rominger, who received his bachelor's degree from 51³Ô¹Ï±¬ÁÏÍø in 1949, will serve a two-year term as 51³Ô¹Ï±¬ÁÏÍø' alumni representative.

Rominger has a distinguished record of service to 51³Ô¹Ï±¬ÁÏÍø, the region and the nation. A Cal Aggie Alumni Association life member, he has served on both the CAAA board of directors and the 51³Ô¹Ï±¬ÁÏÍø Foundation. He also often lends his expertise in agricultural issues to the 51³Ô¹Ï±¬ÁÏÍø, acting as both an adviser and a liaison between UC and the agricultural community.

He and his wife Evelyne own a family farm in Winters, which is managed by their three sons and daughter, also 51³Ô¹Ï±¬ÁÏÍø alumni. Rominger has served on several agricultural boards and committees, including the American Farmland Trust and the California Agriculture Executive Roundtable. Before assuming his federal post, Rominger directed the California Department of Food and Agriculture.

Rominger cites reconciling budget constraints with the increasing numbers of eligible students as the most important issue facing the Board of Regents. "The 51³Ô¹Ï±¬ÁÏÍø is the greatest university system in the world because the people of California have invested the resources necessary to build it and take pride in maintaining the highest standards," he says. "My experience as a government official managing large organizations with large budgets and many employees, coupled with the knowledge gained from operating a farm and being part of many university and agricultural groups should help me with the difficult decisions a regent must make."

Appointments of alumni regents rotate among the ten campuses of the 51³Ô¹Ï±¬ÁÏÍø system. Beginning on July 1, 2004, Rominger will serve as a non-voting "regent designate" for one year, followed by one year as a voting member. UCLA has already named the other alumni regent designate, Eric Juline.

The Cal Aggie Alumni Association's mission is to advance the interest and promote the welfare of 51³Ô¹Ï±¬ÁÏÍø and its alumni; visit for more information. The Board of Regents governs the 51³Ô¹Ï±¬ÁÏÍø, as outlined in the California Constitution. For more information about the UC Board of Regents, visit .