Monday, September 30, 2019
Chris McCoy, Vice Chancellor for Finance & Administration at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville, has been named Chief Information Officer for the University of North Texas System and its flagship University of North Texas. McCoy, who has 30+ years of information technology experience in higher education, starts his new role on October 28 and will be based in Denton.
As the CIO for the UNT System and UNT, McCoy will oversee the central information technology operation that supports the University of North Texas, University of North Texas at Dallas, University of North Texas Health Science Center and UNT System Administration. He will replace Interim Chief Information Officer Charlotte Russell, who will return to her full-time role as Chief Information Security Officer & Senior Director of Management and Risk Services.
In his most recent role at Arkansas, McCoy was responsible for all finance and administrative support functions of the flagship institution of the University of Arkansas system – the largest university in the state of Arkansas, serving more than 28,000 students annually. At Arkansas, McCoy’s direct reports included the Chief Information Officer, Chief Human Resources Officer, Chief Business Officer, Chief of Police, Chief Facilities Officer, Chief Budget Officer and Chief Finance Officer.
“We conducted a national search for this critical leadership position that impacts our flagship university, as well as our system as a whole, on a daily basis,” UNT System Chancellor Lesa Roe said. “With three decades of IT experience at comparable public institutions, including the University of Arkansas, Minnesota State Colleges & Universities System, Iowa State University and Purdue University, Chris is uniquely equipped to understand our challenges and opportunities in the UNT System. We are excited to welcome a leader of Chris’ caliber and we are also appreciative of Charlotte Russell’s hard work while serving as Interim CIO since May, 2019.”
Prior to serving Arkansas as Vice Chancellor for Finance & Administration, McCoy served UA as CIO from 2015-2018. His career also includes leadership roles in IT at Metropolitan State University (Minnesota), the Minnesota State Colleges & Universities System, Iowa State University and Purdue University. McCoy holds a bachelor’s degree in computer science and a master’s degree in engineering from Iowa State, as well as an MBA from the University of Iowa.
“I’m thrilled that Chris McCoy’s new role as UNT System Chief Information Officer will be a dual appointment to lead IT for our university and our system – his rich experience as a leader and innovator at similar institutions makes him a perfect fit,” said UNT President Neal Smatresk. “As a Tier One research university, it’s crucial that UNT continue to improve our student, faculty and staff user experience with technology inside and outside of the classroom, and we’re excited for Chris to help us grow strategically.”