He was co-counsel for the plaintiffs in the 1973 U.S. Supreme Court case San Antonio v. Rodriguez, the landmark school finance lawsuit.

In that position, Yudof initiated many improvements to undergraduate education, including creating a freshman seminar program and Academy of Distinguished Teachers.

[2] In his first year as president, Yudof took advantage of a state budget surplus to fund construction projects, historic preservation, and academic priorities at the university.

Those sanctions included a $1.5 million buyout of the contract of head coach Clem Haskins,[10] a postseason ban for the 1999–2000 season,[11] and scholarship reductions.

[12] The scandal led to the resignations of men's athletic director Mark Dienhart and university vice president McKinley Boston.

[8] In 2002, a six-story apartment-style hall was built at the University of Minnesota and was named Riverbend Commons and then subsequently renamed after Mark G. Yudof.

In November 2009, TIME Magazine recognized Mark Yudof as one of the "10 Best College Presidents", citing his efforts to provide opportunity and access to a quality education for California residents with financial need whose family income is less than $60,000.

"[21] As state budgetary support declined dramatically, Yudof kicked off an online grassroots advocacy effort in order to make the case for the University of California.

Yudof called on all students, faculty, staff, alumni and friends to unite behind an aggressive push to make funding UC a state priority.

In 2009, Yudof further bolstered this effort through a campaign seeking to let legislators and the governor know how critical their support is in preserving the university's commitment to quality and student access.

[23] Also in 2009, Yudof came under criticism for an interview that he gave to Deborah Solomon of the New York Times,[24] in which he joked about taking a pay cut from his salary of over $800,000 to $400,000 in exchange for the White House and Air Force One.

Yudof made the Project You Can announcement at Sunnyside High School, which for 10 years has propelled promising students toward health careers through its Doctors Academy, a program sponsored by UCSF Fresno.

In announcing the proposal, Yudof remarked: [26] We must find creative ways to expand the federal commitment to research and access into a new category: The nuts-and-bolts core funding that is vital to a robust university, allowing it to hire quality professors, equip laboratories and expand the physical plant.New York Times columnist Bob Herbert visited the UC Berkeley campus and had this to say: The problems at Berkeley are particularly acute because of the state's drastic reduction of support.