EAST LANSING – Michigan State President Samuel Stanley has named Lisa Frace as the university’s first senior vice president and chief financial officer. Frace’ appointment is pending approval by the Board of Trustees in its April meeting; she will take over in the new role on May 10.

In his announcement of naming Frace to these newly-created positions, President Stanley made some glowing remarks about her credentials. “She is a champion for professional development in the field specifically focusing on diverse viewpoints and voices,” he said. 

Frace has a very expansive history of work in finance. Most recently, she was the senior associate vice chancellor and chief finance and budget officer at the University of California, Davis. 

Before her stint at UC Davis, Frace was the associate vice president for planning and budget at Arizona State University from 2005-2018. President Stanley was impressed by her work at ASU during the 2008 recession, as she was able to restructure the university’s budget after a steep decrease in funding and revenue. That experience may come in handy for Michigan State in the coming years.

Along with her years of experience of finance within universities, Frace is also a board member of the National Association of College and University Business Officers. In 2017, she was presented with the NACUBO Rising Star Award. This award is given to members who show potential to have success as business officers in higher education.

Stanley said back in early September of 2020 that he wanted to create the two new positions that Frace will be taking over. “Following nearly a year of assessment, I am prepared to make changes in the administrative structure of the university to promote greater effectiveness and efficiency and to support our academic mission.”

 Specifically, Frace’s new job as CFO will be to “manage our ongoing financial progress, develop a comprehensive long-range financial plan and ensure institutional resources are used effectively,” according to Stanley.