At his departure in 1997, Young was the longest-serving college leader in American higher education. For his service, the Young Research Library at UCLA bears his name, as well as Charles E. Young Drive, an important loop road inside campus. He is also a former chairman of the Association of American Universities (1983), and has served on several commissions including those of the International Association of Universities, American Council on Education, the National Association of State Universities and Land-Grant Colleges, the Business Higher Education Forum, and the Mansfield Center for Pacific Affairs.