The UC Noyce Initiative Names Executive Director

The UC Noyce Initiative is pleased to announce the appointment of Bryan Kerner as its executive director, effective May 1. Kerner is the first person to hold this position since the Initiative's public launch on December 12, 2023.

As executive director, Kerner will oversee a consortium of five University of California campuses dedicated to supporting research and development collaborations in digital technology and innovation. These efforts are focused on advancing the public good, with an emphasis on areas such as quantum information science and computing, computational health and a women’s brain health initiative.

The UC Noyce Initiative was established through the generosity of the late Robert N. Noyce, founder of Intel, and his wife, Ann S. Bowers. The five UC campuses involved in the Initiative are UC Berkeley, UC Davis, UC Irvine, UC San Francisco and UC Santa Barbara.

Kerner expressed his excitement in leading the UC Noyce Initiative, highlighting its focus on addressing complex challenges through research and innovation. He praised the researchers associated with the Initiative and expressed pride in leading such a worthwhile endeavor. 

“It is such an honor to be leading The UC Noyce Initiative, which is centered on harnessing the power of five remarkable universities to pursue research and innovation that is focused on helping address some of the most pressing and complex challenges of our time,” he said. 

Michael Groom, trustee of the Robert N. Noyce Trust, commended Kerner's leadership and ability to foster valuable relationships to advance common goals. 

"Throughout his career, Mr. Kerner has continually proven himself as a high-performing professional who fosters valuable relationships in a way that is both authentic and also advances a higher, common goal of the funder and the institution he serves," Groom said, emphasizing the Noyce Trust and Kerner's shared vision for the UC Noyce Initiative. "We look forward to the opportunity to work together to realize this grand vision."

Prior to his role as executive director, Kerner served as the director of development for the sciences at UC Santa Barbara. He played a key role in launching the Ann S. Bowers Women’s Brain Health Initiative, a brain imaging consortium focused on women's brain health across the UC system.

Before his career in higher education, Kerner worked in financial and estate planning, as well as development director for a Santa Barbara-based nonprofit supporting families with children with cancer. He also is active in volunteer leadership roles in his community, including serving as president of the board of directors for the Children’s Creative Project and board member of Explore Ecology.

Kerner holds a bachelor’s degree from Eastern Connecticut State University and a Nonprofit Management Certification from Northwestern University Kellogg School of Management.