53.2 F
Laguna Hills
Thursday, Mar 28, 2024
-Advertisement-

30 Years Away, Why Fram Virjee Returned to OC

Framroze Virjee waved goodbye to his colleagues at the prominent Los Angeles-based law firm O’Melveny & Myers LLP and hopped on a plane to live out his retirement in Rwanda.

But four years later, the 30-year veteran litigator now heads California State University-Fullerton, having succeeded Mildred García at the beginning of the year. He’s under contract until June 2019, when California State University regents hope to complete a national search and appoint a permanent president.

While it’s a short-term contract, Virjee said he has some ideas on where to steer the largest school in the 23-campus CSU system, with over 40,000 students.

“I am not going to rip up the playbook and say, ‘Oh, I don’t think we’re going in the right direction,’” he said.

“What I’m interested in is some fine-tuning and putting my oar in the water and pulling hard with [CSUF] and leading them.”

That’s because the university’s in the midst of what Virjee describes as a “perfect storm.”

This year marks the final year of its five-year strategic plan, and Fullerton has begun the process of putting together the next plan. In February, it announced it will update its 2003 master plan to determine needed facilities and which buildings require improvements.

Virjee said it’s also getting ready for a comprehensive accreditation review by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges that will start with an on-site visit next fall. He added that it’s preparing to start a single comprehensive fundraising campaign to stretch over the next several years.

“I was dropped in the middle of all that, [but] they’re all interconnected,” Virjee said. “So we have to think about what’s our mission, who do we want to be, and where do we want to go in 10 years. So we’re doing that across the campus in every sector.”

The CSU system is facing potential headwinds after it was denied a requested $263 million budget increase. Gov. Jerry Brown’s initial budget proposal in January allocated $92.1 million.

The shortage led CSU Chancellor Timothy White to consider a 4% increase in tuition for the 2018-19 school year, but he announced last week that the system won’t pursue that. White said it will focus on lobbying state officials for the additional $170.9 million until the budget is finalized on June 30.

Titan Blue and White

Founded in 1957, CSUF held its inaugural class in the fall of 1959 in rooms leased from the Fullerton Union High School District. It’s grown to a 241-acre main campus with 110 buildings. It also has a satellite campus at the Garden Grove Center, Grand Central Art Center in Santa Ana, and controls two buildings near Irvine Spectrum.

Virjee pointed out that the campus is a major economic driver, thanks to its massive alumni network and a campus with nearly 41,000 students and more than 4,100 full- and part-time faculty and staff.

The university generates $126 million in local and state tax revenue, and for every dollar invested into it by the state, it returns $13.40 to California’s economy, according to a 2017 study by independent consulting firm ICF International Inc.

“[Our students] are the future of Orange County,” Virjee said. “They grow their business here. They teach here. They give back to the communities here in Orange County. We have a responsibility and the privilege of treading the future for Orange County.”

He said that while he’s been in his role for only about four months, he’s had the benefit of understanding the impact of the CSU system from his previous role as executive vice chancellor and general counsel.

When he took the job in 2014, he visited all 23 CSU campuses with his wife, Julie, and learned “the good, the bad and the ugly.” He said he was able to see how different presidents dealt with issues, and the experience built the foundation for his role now.

He reorganized the Office of the General Counsel to create better relationships between campuses and their lawyers and worked with White and other vice chancellors on the system’s growth strategy, including boosting graduation rates.

Giving Back

Virjee admits that his commitment to CSU took several months of convincing by a few people, including White and CSU Chairwoman of the Board Rebecca Eisen.

He was preparing to move to Rwanda with his wife to run their nonprofit organization, Yambi Rwanda, which was set up as a retirement gift and seed-funded by O’Melveny & Myers. He would also be working with the International Justice Mission, dealing with child and sex trafficking. Virjee, who was a partner at the firm, said his partners thought he’d lost his mind.

The first-generation college graduate had worked his way up at the firm, starting as a summer associate out of its Newport Beach office and making partner after seven years. He specialized in labor and employment law, serving Fortune 50 clients and school districts, including the Los Angeles Unified School District.

“It’s work at the top of the profession. [Clients] only bring us those cases that we call ‘bet the company’ cases, where if they lose, it could mean the company,” he said. “But when you win, you win for the stockholders, or you help the folks who are already financially successful continue to be financially successful, and I was interested in giving back to my community in a way that I had planned in law school.”

Two days before his big move and at Eisen’s behest, he agreed to meet with White over dinner in San Pedro, where Virjee grew up, to offer advice. Virjee speaks fondly of the dinner, saying the two enjoyed good wine and food, but that he emphasized his commitment to Rwanda.

But two hours after landing in the East African country, he received a message from a head hunter asking when he’d be back in OC for an interview.

“I said I was here for at least a month—don’t wait for me—and they said they’ll wait,” he said.

White said Virjee’s dedication to giving back stuck with him. Virjee returned one month later and acquiesced. He and his wife still operate their nonprofit.


Candidate?

Virjee is 57. The search for his replacement won’t start until the fall, after the CSU system fills several other vacancies. He isn’t saying if he’s a candidate for the permanent job, or would agree to another term appointment.

But the boss seems to like his interim hire.

“Rwanda is a country roughly one-third the size of California, and I knew I could sell him on the fact that if he joined the executive ranks at CSU, they could be part of a community and a system that does just the same lifting and launching they envisioned doing in Rwanda,” White said. “We do that every day for our 480,000 students. It’s been a love affair between the Virjees and CSU since that dinner.”

Want more from the best local business newspaper in the country?

Sign-up for our FREE Daily eNews update to get the latest Orange County news delivered right to your inbox!

Previous article
Next article
-Advertisement-

Featured Articles

-Advertisement-
-Advertisement-
-Advertisement-
-Advertisement-

Related Articles

-Advertisement-
-Advertisement-