UC Berkeley Web Feature

James Hyatt, UC Berkeley's chief financial officer, departs for Virginia Tech

30 March 2004

BERKELEY – James Hyatt, vice chancellor for Budget and Finance, announced Monday (March 29) that he will be leaving UC Berkeley after 13 years for a new position as executive vice president and chief operating officer for Virginia Tech.

James Hyatt (Peg Skorpinski photo)

Hyatt serves as the Berkeley campus's chief financial officer. He has been at UC Berkeley since 1991 and has served in several roles, including vice chancellor for resources planning and budget, and associate chancellor for budget and planning.

"We are so very sorry that Jim Hyatt is leaving Berkeley, but also excited for him as he takes on a critical position at Virginia Tech. During his time here Jim has transformed the planning and budget process. He has been an innovator and partner in helping this campus move forward in many important ways," said Chancellor Robert M. Berdahl.

In his new position, Hyatt will serve as Virginia Tech's primary administrative officer, overseeing all non-academic functions of the university, including the physical infrastructure, and has fiduciary responsibility for all university funds, business processes and relationships with university-related corporations. He will begin his duties in late July.

"It was a difficult decision to leave Berkeley, especially now as we face such challenging budget times, but I am very excited about working at Virginia Tech. It has a bright future, is highly regarded around the country and the leadership has it well positioned for excellence," said Hyatt.

At Berkeley, Hyatt was responsible for developing a multi-year financial capacity and planning model, spearheaded the e-Berkeley Internet initiative and helped to implement the Berkeley Financial System, the online campuswide financial management system.

In announcing the appointment Monday (3/29), Virginia Tech President Charles W. Steger said, "We were very impressed with Jim's breadth in and understanding of higher education financial management. His work record and publications are highly respected in the profession."

Hyatt said he looks forward to moving with his family to Blacksburg, Va., home of Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. Popularly known as, Virginia Tech, it is Virginia's largest university with 25,600 students.