I am thrilled to share the news that we recently finalized two campus leadership recruitments.
Edward D. Reiskin will be joining UC Santa Cruz in early February as our next Vice Chancellor for Finance, Operations and Administration, and Chief Financial Officer. Ed currently serves as the city of Oakland’s top administrative officer, and I am excited that he will be joining our leadership team. He brings with him extensive management experience, with more than 20 years as a public sector administrator. His ability to successfully navigate complex environments and diverse stakeholder groups, and his competency in a host of areas over which he will have direct oversight on our campus, will greatly benefit our campus community. You will find a story on Ed on our campus newscenter.
De Acker has accepted our offer to become Campus Ombuds. She joins us from UC Merced, where she is Director of Programs Development. She previously served as the director of the Office of Campus Climate. Her first day will be Jan. 4. I am thrilled we were able to recruit someone of De’s caliber for our newly reconstituted ombuds position, which was eliminated on our campus in 2012 in response to budget reductions. She has deep experience in both conflict resolution and issues of equity and inclusion. She will be a great help as we continue our work to create and support inclusive environments for all students, staff and faculty. An ombuds is extremely valuable, able to facilitate two-way, informal communication that can resolve workplace issues that could otherwise escalate into more serious matters. A story on De is posted online.
I thank all in our campus community who participated in these recruitments. I appreciate the feedback and perspectives you shared after listening to presentations by the finalists. In both searches, we had strong candidates to consider, offering unique skills and strengths. I believe we have found strong additions to our leadership team in both Ed and De.
I offer my deep thanks to Biju Kamaleswaran, who will continue to serve as the Finance, Operations and Administration Division’s interim leader until Ed’s arrival in February. Biju has filled that role since January 2022. When Ed arrives, Biju will return to his post as Associate Vice Chancellor, Financial Affairs and Campus Controller. The work of the division is so critical to our mission, and the FOA team has continued to strengthen its services and support since Biju took the reins nearly a year ago.
Thank you for helping to recruit these excellent leaders and please help me welcome them to campus over the coming months.
