UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — In support of Penn State’s efforts to optimize its organizational operating structure, the University’s Finance and Business unit has undergone a reorganization that will elevate three Finance and Business staff members to increased leadership positions that take advantage of the forthcoming efficiencies to be created by the optimized service teams (OST) initiative.
“While we are very early in the OST evaluation process, we are able to foresee where progress will be made and efficiencies will be created in our organization. I’m so pleased that we have the talent already on our team to take on new and greater responsibilities, allowing us to streamline our organizational structure,” said Sara Thorndike, senior vice president for Finance and Business. “At the same time, I’m very grateful to the individuals who previously served in these roles as their hard work has made this outcome possible.”
With three vacant associate vice president positions in her unit, Thorndike is transitioning responsibilities among the Finance and Business leadership team and moving oversight for some areas to other positions. The reorganization results in the net elimination of three senior-level administration positions.
As part of the restructuring, David Snyder, who currently serves as assistant vice president for Auxiliary and Business Services (ABS), has been elevated to associate vice president for Auxiliary and Business Services. The position vacated by John Papazoglou in January will not be filled. In addition to his current responsibilities, Snyder will take on oversight for ABS units including Housing and Food Service and Transportation Services, as well as the Bryce Jordan Center and the University Park Airport. Snyder’s position will evolve over time as several of his current ABS areas of responsibility will be included in the OST evaluation process.
Snyder was appointed assistant vice president for ABS in January 2021 after serving for eight years as director of business and finance for the Bryce Jordan Center and Hospitality Services. He has been with ABS for nearly 25 years, serving in positions in housing services, accounting and finance.
The vacancy for associate vice president for budget and university budget officer also will not be filled, with the responsibilities previously under that position being absorbed by the current associate vice president for finance, Virginia Teachey. Teachey’s new title is associate vice president for budget and finance.
Teachey joined Penn State in December 2021 as associate vice president for finance from the University of North Carolina at Pembroke, where she served most recently as vice chancellor of finance and administration. She has more than two decades of successful financial and operations management experience, including enterprise risk management, strategic planning, policy development and implementation, facility management, auditing and compliance.
Jen Feeman, assistant vice president for Finance and Business and associate controller for the College of Medicine, will be elevated to assistant vice president for Finance and Business and controller for the College of Medicine, eliminating the associate vice president position at the college previously held by Kurt Kissinger. Feeman will report to Thorndike.
Feeman was named assistant vice president for finance and business at the College of Medicine in 2018 after previously serving as the college’s director of budget and planning. She has also served as the operations director for the Department of Psychiatry at Penn State Health and as a financial liaison for Penn State Health Milton S. Hershey Medical Center.
“I’m thrilled that we are able to recognize these talented and dedicated Finance and Business colleagues by elevating them to our leadership team,” Thorndike said. “Thanks to the tremendous team we have in place, I’m confident we can continue to meet the needs of the University and the units we serve, while also significantly reducing expenditures.”
The Finance and Business reorganization is effective as of Feb. 1.