Dear colleagues:
I’m pleased to share that Paul Ellinger has been named vice president/chief financial officer and comptroller of the University of Illinois System, following approval from the Board of Trustees.
Paul has served in this role on an interim basis since July 2021. He succeeded Avijit Ghosh when Avijit was named interim executive vice president and vice president for academic affairs.
The vice president/chief financial officer and comptroller is the senior executive officer responsible for the operation of all financial functions for the U of I System, including budget execution, financing, and execution of all capital projects.
Paul continues to hold the rank of professor at the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences (ACES) at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC). He is a three-degree graduate of UIUC, earning a doctorate in finance, a master’s degree in agricultural economics and a bachelor’s degree in agricultural mechanization.
Paul worked closely with me, Avijit and leadership from the three universities on the recently approved $7.65 billion systemwide budget of the U of I System Board of Trustees.
Prior to Paul’s transition to serving in the interim role, he was UIUC’s associate chancellor and vice provost for budget and resource planning, where he provided strategic budget planning and allocation advice to the chancellor and provost, as well guidance to the university in budget, finance, planning and resource allocation.
Paul joined the UIUC faculty in 1995, specializing in finance and accountancy at ACES. Prior to joining the Office of the Provost in 2016, he was head of ACES’ Department of Agricultural and Consumer Economics. He is a published expert in financial modeling, credit risk and financial management of institutions.
Paul’s service and many talents are vital to our efforts systemwide. As a faculty member and alumnus, he brings an important perspective to his role.
I’m confident Paul will help our system continue on the path to prudent growth through diligent financial stewardship. Please join me in wishing him ongoing success.
Sincerely,
Tim