Timothy O’Donnell chosen as UA vice chancellor of finance administration
by March 7, 2016 5:58 pm 207 views
Timothy J. O’Donnell was named vice chancellor for finance and administration at the University of Arkansas effective March 1, after leading the division in an interim capacity since July 1, 2014. O’Donnell previously served as associate vice chancellor for budget and financial planning.
“Tim O’Donnell has done an excellent job leading the division of finance and administration since 2014 and has proven that he is the right person moving forward,” said Chancellor Joseph Steinmetz. “This is an important position that impacts everything the university does and having someone with Tim’s leadership abilities, institutional knowledge and experience gives us great confidence. This is especially important given the current challenging financial times we face in higher education.”
Seven units report to the vice chancellor for finance and administration including facilities management, human resources, information technology services, business and administrative strategic information systems, business affairs, financial affairs and the university police department.
“The University of Arkansas is such a great institution, with so many loyal and dedicated faculty and staff, so I’m honored to be able to continue working with them in this role,” O’Donnell said.
While serving in the interim role, O’Donnell has overseen the refunding of several debt issues on campus resulting in significant financial savings; instituting new procedures to generate efficiencies in several operational areas; implementing a new paycard option for payroll and offering electronic W-2s; the use of body cameras by university police officers; the continued progress toward campus facilities upgrades; major progress toward improving campus wireless access; and improved stabilization of network, servers and other systems.
O’Donnell, who is a member of the UA’s executive committee reporting directly to Steinmetz, worked on the development of additional financial accountability measures in the budget and financial reporting areas in addition to serving on the university’s Freedom of Information task force.
Prior to joining the UA in 2013, O’Donnell’s experience in financial management and administration included a 22-year career with Southwestern Energy Co., where he rose to the position of vice president and served as treasurer.
O’Donnell has a bachelor’s degree from the University of Iowa, and holds membership in the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the Arkansas Society of Certified Public Accountants.