Phoung Le
STAFF WRITER
After a nationwide search, the new position of associate vice chancellor/vice president for finance has been accepted by Jim McShan. McShan, who has held the position in an interim capacity since 1995, intends to bring in a new financial system to the University of Houston with his background in accounting.
The UH Finance Office has the goal of "operating as the financial and information system needed for the 21st century of the University," said Randy Harris, UH vice president of administration and finance.
McShan said, "I'm excited because it's a big opportunity." McShan was selected after an intensive process of interviews of 40 candidates. This was narrowed to three finalists.
Two of the important qualifications needed for this position are either a masters in finance, or designation as a certified public accountant.
From 1983 through '85 McShan acted in a comptroller accounting manager position. From 1985 until 1995, he was a state auditor for agencies in the Texas A&M system, giving him experience in comprehensive accounting. Finally, from 1995 through 1998 he was the UH director of finance.
The position is "two-tiered" according to McShan, because it is a combination of both a UH and a UH-System position. He has to act as the comptroller, whose responsibilities are more on the accounting side. The other function of the position is as vice-chancellor, which is more of an administrative function.
The new financial system will make it possible for students at the other UH campuses, UH-Downtown, UH-Clear Lake and UH-Victoria, to use the VIP payment services, said McShan.
The Office of Finance "is consistently looking for ways to make the (UH system) easier," said McShan. The UH Office of Finance is looking at, for example, transferring the payment system from the phone system to the Internet.
After many complaints by both faculty and students about the current financial system at UH, Harris said that the UH finance system might seem "transparent" to students, but the challenges with changing the system are massive.
Harris said that the responsibilities of the UH Office of Finance include budget reports, treasury, general accounting, research accounting, taxation, payroll, financial support, the plant fund account and accounts payable.
The primary goal for the UH Office of Finance is to have its final product be education, said Harris. So improvements of hiring people like McShan and creating an advanced system of efficiency for all of the UH-System must promote education.