About the Small Projects Working Group Initiative
From October 2024 through April 2025, the Small Projects Working Group (SPWG) brought together a cross-section of UCSF leaders, faculty, and administrative staff from schools, departments, Real Estate, and Facilities Services to improve how small-scale capital projects move forward at UCSF.
This work identified key challenges and now drives a clear, campus-wide approach to improving how Real Estate and Facilities Services deliver small projects for the UCSF community by:
- Simplifying project processes
- Improving access to funding
- Strengthening communication across teams
- Establishing a defined path for resolving project issues
What Changed
The SPWG delivered 13 actionable recommendations that are already shaping how projects are planned, funded, and delivered. Together, these improvements are designed to help projects move forward faster, with fewer surprises and better outcomes.
These changes focus on:
- Making it easier to get projects started with earlier planning support
- Reducing unexpected costs by funding key project requirements
- Improving coordination between departments and project teams
- Creating clearer processes for approvals, permitting, and escalation
Small Projects Working Group
Sponsors
Erin Gore, Senior Vice Chancellor, Finance and Administration
Clarice Estrada, AVC, Finance & Administration, EVCP
Chair
David Morgan, Vice Dean for Research, SOM, and Professor, Physiology
Committee Members
| Bertina Lee, Admin Operations Supervisor, School of Nursing | Brian Black, PhD, Professor and Director, Cardiovascular Research Institute |
David Julius, PhD, Professor and Chair, Physiolog | Duan Xu, PhD, Professor, Radiology & Biomedical Imaging |
| Harold Collard, MD, MS, Vice Chancellor, Research | Holly Ames, Director of Strategic Business Development, School of Dentistry |
| Jane Czech, MS, Associate Chair, Finance & Administration, Neurology | Jeffrey Bush, PhD, Professor and Chair, Cell and Tissue Biology |
| Kimberly Cantero, Chief Administrative Officer, Pharmaceutical Chemistry | Lin Lin, RN, PhD, Clinical Professor, School of Nursing |
| Luke DeLong, Chief Administrative Officer, Ophthalmology | Michelle Arkin, PhD, Professor and Chair, Pharmaceutical Chemistry |
| Mounira Kanaani, Chief Administrative Officer, Dermatology | Shelley Green, Chief Administrative Officer, Physiology |
| Susan Lynch, PhD, Professor, Gastroenterology | Tippi MacKenzie, MD, Professor, Surgery |
Learn how the Small Projects Working Group Initiative is making requesting projects at UCSF easier.