Job description

Buffalo State University – an involved community of learners, scholars, leaders, and global citizens from all walks of life – is a vibrant, four-year, public comprehensive university and member of the State University of New York (SUNY) system of higher education. The University seeks a collaborative and accomplished leader to serve as its next Vice President for Finance and Management (VPFM). The VPFM will join a new President with a strongly student-focused mission who is eager to work together with the University’s Cabinet and the broader campus to enhance the institution through enrollment, retention, and student success. As a vital member of the new leadership team, the VPFM will contribute to a Cabinet that advances the University’s mission and strengthens institutional culture. Buffalo State seeks a VPFM who is energized by challenges and problem-solving, and who genuinely enjoys building an exciting future.

The Institution: Founded in 1871 as the Buffalo Normal School, Buffalo State University has grown into one of the most dynamic and unique institutions within the SUNY system. Accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, Buffalo State has two academic schools and 30 academic departments, all connected by common intellectual foundations and offering a full range of educational programs in their areas of study. Eight academic centers and institutes offer intellectual enrichment and community engagement and provide opportunities for students and faculty to work together across disciplines.

Buffalo State enrolls nearly 6,000 students annually, serving a diverse and inclusive community. Half (50.5%) of the total student body identify as students of color and 42% of undergraduate students are firstgeneration university students. The institution has been recognized nationally through awards such as the Carnegie Elective Classification for Community Engagement, the Higher Education Excellence in Diversity (HEED) Award, and the Inclusion Diversity Equity Awareness (IDEA) Award.

Buffalo State’s faculty and staff are distinguished by their academic excellence and community involvement, and many have received prestigious honors, including SUNY Distinguished Professor ranks and Fulbright grants. The University’s small class sizes foster close student-faculty interaction and personalized learning experiences.

The campus features state-of-the-art facilities, including a $100 million Science and Mathematics Complex and Whitworth Ferguson Planetarium, the Great Lakes Center (the only field station on the Great Lakes within SUNY), and the newly renovated E. H. Butler Library, which serves as the academic heart of the institution.

Buffalo State’s mission is to empower students to succeed and inspire a lifelong passion for learning, with a vision to be a nationally recognized leader in public higher education. The University embraces values such as access, student-centered learning, intellectual discovery, community engagement, and respect for diversity. With more than 100,000 alumni worldwide, including 57,000 in Western New York, Buffalo State continues to build on its legacy of excellence, preparing students to become leaders and changemakers in an increasingly global society.

The Position: The Vice President for Finance and Management reports to the President, serves on the Cabinet, and is the University’s chief financial officer. The VPFM oversees the following areas: Financial Sustainability (financial planning, budget planning, position management, purchasing and accounts payable); Workforce Management (labor management, recruitment, and employee services); Technology (technology infrastructure and support); Facilities Management (maintenance and operations, environmental health and safety, and planning, design, and construction); Campus Safety (emergency management and University Policing); and other Support Areas (student accounts, parking services, and risk and compliance). The division has 8 direct reports and 237 staff, and the VPFM is accountable for an all-funds operating budget of $109 million and a capital program of $9.3 million. The VPFM also works with the University’s auxiliary services corporation and with the Buffalo State College Foundation on foundation accounting.

Financial sustainability at Buffalo State is a shared enterprise, and the VPFM is expected to provide leadership well beyond the boundaries of the division. The revenue side of the budget is largely managed elsewhere – in enrollment, in philanthropy, and in the academic program portfolio – and the largest share of expense is personnel governed by collective bargaining agreements negotiated at the state level. The ability to build effective working partnerships with Academic Affairs, Enrollment Management, Student Affairs, and Institutional Advancement is therefore as central to this role as it is to supervision of the reporting units.

The VPFM is the University’s principal voice on its finances – with the campus and its governance bodies, collective bargaining units, SUNY System Administration and the State University Construction Fund, and Office of the State Comptroller. Buffalo State values transparency in its financial decision-making process. The VPFM is expected to be the person who makes that possible, bringing the same numbers to the Cabinet, University Senate, and campus, and explaining what they mean before decisions are made rather than after.

The scope of this position goes beyond that of a chief financial officer as well. The University is not necessarily looking for a candidate who has personal experience managing every aspect of an office; it is looking for a candidate with real depth in finance, and the range and judgment to lead operations with assistance from capable senior leaders, and a demonstrated record of developing those senior leaders.

Opportunities and Priorities:

• Few chief financial officers get to help shape the team they join. Due to a retirement after decades of service in one division and extended interim leadership in two other divisions, Buffalo State is filling three vice president positions concurrently.
• The next VPFM will not be joining a firmly entrenched Cabinet so much as helping create one with significant new membership. The VPFM will join a new President, new Vice President for Enrollment Management, and new Vice President for Student Affairs, alongside a seasoned Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, Vice President for Institutional Advancement and External Relations, Chief Diversity Officer, and Chief of Staff, whose institutional knowledge runs deep.
• The direction, working style, and culture of the Cabinet are still being set, and the VPFM will help establish those standards, working with a President committed to transparency and shared governance.
• Buffalo State has been following a published Framework for Financial Sustainability since 2024, and has closed part of its structural gap through program deactivations, voluntary separations, and sustained cost control. The gap is not fully closed, however. It will not be solved by reduction alone, and it is not a challenge this position carries alone. It runs through the academic program portfolio, the enrollment rebuild, and the University’s physical footprint – and the President intends to collaboratively work through financial sustainability issues with the next VPFM rather than simply handing them over to the VPFM. Buffalo State does not yet have a multi-year financial model that ties enrollment scenarios to the personnel budget, the space the University operates, and the capital plan. Building that model, and getting the campus to understand and support it, is the central assignment of the first year.
• Buffalo State operates a campus built for a considerably larger student body, with the deferred maintenance liability and the fixed operating cost that implies. Decisions about which buildings the University keeps, renovates, repurposes, or takes out of service are among the most consequential financial decisions ahead. Those decisions belong to this position, in partnership with the President, the Cabinet, and the State University Construction Fund.
• The next VPFM inherits a division that has carried a heavy load. Its staff has absorbed reductions and taken on added responsibility over several years while keeping the University’s daily operations running. A number of positions across finance, human resources, and technology are currently open or filled on an interim basis. Filling those positions, developing the leaders already in place, and establishing a divisional succession plan are among the new VPFM’s earliest opportunities, all of which the President is committed to supporting.
• The President is looking for a partner, not a functional manager. The next VPFM will work closely with the President and the Cabinet on nearly everything the University decides: bringing recommendations, saying plainly what the numbers show and what they rule out, and contributing to decisions that reach well beyond the finance and management portfolio. A chief financial officer is often the person in the room who has to say “no,” and the President would rather hear it early and in the room than receive it later through a budget. The President expects to be close to this work, and expects the VPFM to run the division.
• Buffalo State is building a renewed vision and brand for itself, and much of what people experience of an institution comes through ordinary transactions: filling a position, approving a purchase, repairing a room, answering a student’s billing question, etc. The staff has continued to perform this work through several difficult years, with fewer people and aging systems. The VPFM has a real opportunity to give them better tools and simpler processes, so that what the campus experiences day to day matches the institution that Buffalo State says it is.

Qualifications: Buffalo State is an urban-engaged, access institution. First-generation and Pell-eligible students make up a large share of its enrollment, and its national recognition for social mobility follows directly from that mission. The University seeks to stabilize and grow enrollment across every population it serves, from first-year and transfer to graduate and post-traditional. The search committee will be considering and giving preference to the following qualifications and skills.

• Leadership through financial contraction: a record of leading an organization through closing a structural deficit, reallocating resources, or restructuring operations, and of remaining credible with the people affected.
• Strategic financial thinker and leader: serves as the President’s key advisor on all budget matters; a record of multi-year financial planning, forecasting, modeling, and scenario analysis that connect resources to the enrollment rebuild and strategic priorities.
• Resource alignment in a constrained environment: a record of repositioning budgets toward priorities, finding efficiencies, and generating revenue creatively (public-private partnerships, auxiliaries, entrepreneurial approaches, etc.) in a public and unionized setting.
• Capital, facilities, and space leadership: experience with campus master planning, capital funding and construction, deferred maintenance stewardship, and energy and sustainability planning.
• Technology and information security: the judgment to oversee an information technology division and a chief information officer, including enterprise systems strategy, cybersecurity risk, and incident response.
• Campus safety and emergency management: experience overseeing a sworn police department, Clery Act compliance, and institutional emergency response, or the demonstrated judgment to lead that function through a chief of police.
• SUNY and New York State fluency (or comparable): comfort working with SUNY System Finance, Office of the State Comptroller, State University Construction Fund, and state regulatory processes; successful executive experience in a public, unionized higher education institution strongly preferred.
• Transparent communicator: a record of explaining complex financial information credibly to faculty, staff, students, and governance bodies, including when news is unwelcomed, and to build campus trust around institutional finances.
• Systems and service: a record of improving administrative processes and service levels through effective use of enterprise and financial systems, and of building a data-informed, service-oriented culture across a large division.
• Investing in people: a record of significant supervisory experience over large, diverse teams, recruiting strong leaders, developing the people already in place, and building cohesive teams that others want to join. An administrative leader who never loses sight of students as the purpose of the enterprise.
• Credentials: an advanced degree in business, public administration, or a related field and/or a CPA. Approximately 10 years of progressively responsible senior leadership experience in finance and administration, with direct accountability for an institutional or organizational operating budget.

Location: As the second largest city in New York State, Buffalo is a well-rounded and culturally significant metropolitan area, offering a broad array of amenities and experiences. Known as the City of Good Neighbors, the community has earned a reputation for warmth and hospitality, providing a supportive environment for newcomers adjusting to a new setting. Buffalo’s comparatively low cost of living allows residents to enjoy these amenities without the financial pressures common in larger metropolitan areas. Altogether, Buffalo offers a combination of affordability, cultural depth, and regional accessibility.

The city’s waterfront development along Lake Erie provides not only scenic views but also a sense of daily rhythm, where residents often find themselves drawn to the shoreline for a moment of quiet between work and home. Its Canalside district serves as a central gathering place, hosting seasonal events and offering recreational opportunities that help define Buffalo’s communal character. The historic Elmwood Village adds a distinctly walkable charm, with boutiques, cafes, and arts institutions that provide a welcoming feel. Architectural landmarks such as the Darwin Martin House highlight Buffalo’s legacy of design innovation and its commitment to preserving cultural heritage. Sports culture remains a prominent part of local identity, with game days creating a shared sense of excitement across the city. Buffalo’s culinary landscape, shaped by longstanding communities and contemporary restaurateurs, offers a blend of tradition and creativity that continues to evolve. Nature is readily accessible, with waterfront trails, parks, and beaches providing residents with convenient outdoor escapes. Proximity to Niagara Falls allows residents to visit one of North America’s most iconic natural attractions. Western New York’s surrounding towns, wineries, and rural landscapes offer additional opportunities for exploration, while the cities of Toronto and Rochester remain within easy reach for broader cultural experiences. Winters are part of the city’s seasonal rhythm, embraced through festivals, winter sports, and neighborhood traditions.

About the State University of New York System: SUNY is the largest comprehensive system of higher education in the United States, with 64 colleges and universities. Across the system, SUNY has four academic health centers, five hospitals, four medical schools, two dental schools, a law school, the country’s oldest school of maritime, and the state’s only college of optometry, and manages one U.S. Department of Energy National Laboratory. In total, SUNY serves about 1.4 million students amongst its entire portfolio of credit- and non-credit-bearing courses and programs, continuing education, and community outreach programs. SUNY’s support for Buffalo State is evidenced in many ways. The SUNY Academic Momentum Campaign is designed to increase the retention and completion rates of all SUNY undergraduate students and eliminate gaps for Pell-eligible students and other demographic groups. SUNY also supports Buffalo State and all 64 institutions through the four guiding pillars established by SUNY Chancellor John B. King Jr.: student success; research and scholarship; diversity, equity, and inclusion; and economic development and upward mobility. To learn more about how SUNY creates opportunities, visit www.suny.edu.

Salary and Benefits: The salary range for this position is 175,000-225,000, and the University/SUNY offers a competitive benefits package.

How to apply

Application: Interested candidates should submit only a cover letter and curriculum vitae to RPA Inc. at [email protected]. For a confidential discussion about this opportunity or to make a nomination, please contact Kira Heath, Search Manager, or Isaac Karaffa, Vice President and Senior Consultant, at the email address above. The first review of candidates will begin on October 28.

SUNY Buffalo State University (“Buffalo State”) is committed to maintaining a learning and workplace environment free from sexual harassment and unlawful discrimination. In its continuing effort to seek equity in education and employment, and in support of federal and state anti-discrimination legislation, Buffalo State has adopted this complaint procedure for the prompt and equitable investigation and resolution of allegations of unlawful discrimination on the basis of age, race, creed, color, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, military status, sex, disability, predisposing genetic characteristics, familial status, marital status, domestic violence victim status, or criminal conviction. Harassment on the basis of the above-protected categories is one form of unlawful discrimination. Buffalo State will take steps to prevent discrimination and harassment, to prevent the recurrence of discrimination and harassment, and to remedy its discriminatory effects on the victim(s) and others, if appropriate. Sex discrimination includes sexual harassment and sexual and interpersonal violence and may be addressed under this policy or the campus’s Title IX policy, depending on whether the alleged conduct meets the definition found at 34 CFR § 106.30. Retaliation against a person who files a complaint, serves as a witness, or assists or participates in any manner in this procedure is strictly prohibited and may result in disciplinary action.