Amanda Friendman
UCLA Chancellor Gene Block announced he plans to step down from the helm of UCLA at the end of this school year, a post he has held for 17 years. A selection of his impressive career and vast contributions to UCLA were chronicled in the Fall 2023 UCLA Magazine cover story. Among his UCLA highlights, the article touts Block’s championship of UCLA as a public university working for societal good and cites his leadership in the creation of the Depression Grand Challenge. Block, a neurobiologist, was particularly invested in the DGC to understand and better treat depression. Professor Nelson Freimer, MD, who leads the DGC, credits Block in the article with “play[ing] a really instrumental role in making sure that it would be not just an academic pursuit, that it would have tangible societal benefits.”
Chancellor Block leaves an incredible legacy, and his work on campus will continue as he dedicates more time to his research focused on sleep and circadian rhythms.
Read more of Block’s accomplishments in the UCLA Magazine cover story.
