Since taking office as president of the University of Arizona on Oct. 1, 2024, Suresh Garimella has focused on assembling a new leadership team, appointing several people into new leadership roles in hopes of strengthening the university’s administration. Here are three new appointments we can expect to see in the new year.
Dr. Francisco Garcia, chief of staff to the president
Dr. Francisco Garcia, a two-time University of Arizona graduate and Distinguished Outreach Professor of Public Health, Obstetrics & Gynecology, Mexican American Studies and Clinical Pharmacy, has been appointed as the chief of staff to president Garimella. He officially began his role at the beginning of this month.
Prior to this appointment, Garcia served as Pima County’s chief medical officer and deputy county administrator. However, Garcia believes his previous experience as serving as faculty at the UA are more relevant to how he can contribute to the UA community.
“Yes, I have had some really high profile kinds of jobs like [Pima] health department director and deputy to the county administrator, but I think in many ways the other background is really almost more important than my more recent background,” Garcia said.
According to a UA press release, in his new role, Garcia is responsible for, “supervising the staff of the university president’s office, serving as the primary liaison with the Arizona Board of Regents and coordinating work among members of Garimella’s senior team.” Garcia will be paid $300,000 a year in this position.
“I will depend on Dr. Garcia’s abilities and partnership as the university community begins an effort to shape, communicate and implement a shared vision for our service to the state of Arizona,” Garimella said in a press release.
Garcia has a long history with the university, earning his undergraduate degree in psychology and his medical degree here. His first job was as a work study student at the campus health center, an experience he said inspired his career in medicine.
“I have deep ties to this land. I have deep ties to this community. I am not here for the next, you know, couple of days and [then] gone. That’s just not me. Those are not the kinds of commitments I make,” Garcia said.
Garcia said that his main focus in this position is to be a facilitator for president Garimella and also to help the president deliver his vision to the UA community.
Tomás Díaz de la Rubia, Senior Vice President for Research and Innovation
Tomás Díaz de la Rubia, was appointed as the Senior Vice President for Research and Innovation on Nov. 11, 2024. Díaz de la Rubia is a materials scientist and has had previous experience in research leadership. He will now oversee the university’s $1 billion research enterprise.
He was among four finalists in the UA’s selection process for this position and will make an annual salary of $460,000.
“My vision for the Office of Research, Innovation and Impact is that we support the continued excellence of University of Arizona faculty and students through an effective and efficient research administration,” Díaz de la Rubia said. “To achieve our goals and deliver transformative impact for Arizona and the world, it will take transdisciplinary collaboration, transformative industry and government partnerships, and a culture of inclusivity and creativity to address the pressing issues of our time.”
Díaz de la Rubia comes to the UA from the University of Oklahoma, where he served as Vice President for Research and Partnerships for five years. He has also held leadership positions at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Deloitte and Purdue University.
Elliott Cheu Named Interim Chief Information Officer
Elliott Cheu, a Distinguished Professor of Physics at UA, has been appointed interim Chief Information Officer (CIO), which will follow the retirement of CIO Barry Brummund on Jan. 17.
Cheu has held five interim leadership positions at the university, including Interim Senior Vice President for Research and Innovation which Díaz de la Rubia recently took over.
“I feel like that’s my goal in life — is to step in when there’s a need for somebody,” Cheu said.
In this position Cheu will focus on centralizing IT systems and ensuring consistent technology infrastructure across campus. Cheu will be making $420,000 a year.
“We are going to try and make sure we can communicate well to students and staff and tell everyone what’s coming up,” Cheu said. “Sometimes, especially on the tech side, we get a little bit into a lot of acronyms and things that are a little hard to understand. So I think we are going to try to be pretty clear-spoken and let people know what’s coming down the pike.”
According to a UA press release, some of Cheu’s responsibilities include, “advancing high-performance computing, modernizing financial and HR systems, and addressing remaining centralization and coordination needs.”
One of the projects Cheu said he is looking forward to is digital cat cards. According to Cheu, these cards are being piloted right now and will soon be accessible on mobile devices, enabling easier payment and identification.
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