Jim Davis accepts job at UCLA; permanent CIO search continues

Jim Davis, interim chief information officer and professor of chemical engineering at Ohio State, has accepted a position at the University of California, Los Angeles.

Davis, who guided Ohio State through massive increases in the use of the Internet and other computer technologies, will become UCLA's associate vice chancellor for information technology, effective March 1.

During his tenure, Davis led the University through its transformation from an institution in which information technology was used by a few to one where it is used by all. With a 15-fold growth in Internet activity and a 20-fold growth in e-mail, the Ohio State user community grew from several thousand to more than 60,000. The World Wide Web, virtually nonexistent 10 years ago, is now a major technology vehicle.

Jim Davis

"Jim has been the go-to person on the University's technology strategy over the last five years," said Edward J. Ray, executive vice president and provost. "He has been instrumental in taking Ohio State to a new level by harnessing the power of information technology to facilitate collaboration, enhance accessibility and remove physical, geographical and time constraints. We wish him well in his new position."

The search for a permanent chief information officer is ongoing. Until a new CIO is hired, the University has contracted with Strider & Cline for the services of Eileen Strider to coordinate the critical and growing information technology functions. Strider & Cline, a Kansas City consulting firm, has served Ohio State as a consultant on the development of a new information system, the ARMS project.

"Eileen Strider brings over 30 years of vast IT knowledge to the position," Ray said. "We will benefit from the skills she brings working with universities as a consultant, her background as chief information officer for Universal Underwriters Insurance Group, and her experience with McDonnell Douglas Corp. We are fortunate to have her guidance in this interim period."

E. Gordon Gee to leave Brown, is named chancellor at Vanderbilt

E. Gordon Gee, president of Ohio State from 1990 to 1997 and president of Brown University since January 1998, has been named chancellor of Vanderbilt University, effective Aug. 1. Vanderbilt announced his appointment Feb. 7.

Vanderbilt, in Nashville, Tenn., is a private research university of approximately 5,900 undergraduates and 4,300 graduate and professional students.

A committee of trustees considered more than 150 candidates before nominating Gee. Vanderbilt Board of Trust Vice Chairman Dennis C. Bottorff said, "[Gee] has made a difference -- not just once, but at several of the best universities in the country."

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