Lawrence University President Mark Burstein has announced the appointment of Christopher Lee as the college’s new vice president for finance and administration.
Lee has spent the past 10 years with Thunderbird School of Global Management, a highly regarded not-for-profit graduate school based in Phoenix, Ariz. Since 2010, he has served as president of Thunderbird Russia in Moscow, where he was responsible for the strategic leadership, program quality, daily management, business development, financial outcomes and compliance of Thunderbird’s $7 million wholly-owned corporate training and development subsidiary. The Moscow center provides training and development solutions to companies throughout Russia, Ukraine and Kazakhstan.
He joined Thunderbird in 2003 as associate vice president, finance and administrative services. In 2009 he was named vice president of finance and technology.
In addition to his decade in higher education, Lee spent 10 years in public company management, holding leadership roles at Fossil, Inc. in Richardson, Texas, and Bank One in Chicago.
“Chris’ strong finance and administrative skills and leadership experiences impressed all of us,” said Burstein. “He has considered most of the issues that presently face Lawrence during his time at Thunderbird. What drew us to Chris even more is his collaborative approach to challenging issues.”
Lee, a native of Dallas, Texas who has lived in Moscow the past three years, said Lawrence’s small size and reputation for high quality learning were great attractions for him.
“Coming from a unique institution like Thunderbird, those factors are blended with the uniqueness of Lawrence’s students and the phenomenal Lawrence culture I have found in alumni that I know and in the new colleagues I have met during the search process,” said Lee, who has been active with United Way of Russia and Big Brothers/Big Sisters of Russia, which works with institutionalized orphans.
Lee earned a bachelor’s degree in economics/finance from Texas Wesleyan University and a master’s in business administration degree in global management from Thunderbird School of Global Management.
Lee is set to join the Lawrence administration Jan. 6, 2014.
About Lawrence University
Founded in 1847, Lawrence University uniquely integrates a college of liberal arts and sciences with a nationally recognized conservatory of music, both devoted exclusively to undergraduate education. It was selected for inclusion in the Fiske Guide to Colleges 2014 and the book “Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools That Will Change the Way You Think About College.” Individualized learning, the development of multiple interests and community engagement are central to the Lawrence experience. Lawrence draws its 1,500 students from nearly every state and more than 50 countries.
