We partnered with the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts on the search for a Deputy Director for Finance and Chief Financial Officer. The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts is a comprehensive US art museum with nearly 50,000 works of art spanning 6,000 years of world history. 

Our work resulted in the recruitment of Andrew Harris to the role.

Harris is a senior level financial and operational leader with 30 years of experience in the higher education, nonprofit and government sectors. His expertise includes finance, budgeting, treasury and cash operations; debt financing; research; strategic financial management; technology and administration. 

In his previous position as Vice President for Finance and Administration, Chief Financial Officer and Chief Administrative Officer at Roosevelt University, Harris was a strategic partner in the school’s Building a Stronger Roosevelt plan where he helped to strengthen the university’s financial position, upgrade the bond outlook from negative to stable and returned the university to profitability. He also engaged the university, located in Chicago, Illinois, in a debt restructuring plan to provide relief from debt service obligations, which reduced debt service costs by more than $20 million in the first five years. Roosevelt University ended Fiscal Year 2021 with a balanced budget and entered Fiscal Year 2022 with a balanced budget. Harris also helped grow the school’s endowment fund, which doubled in size to over $160 million during his tenure. 

Previously, Harris was Chief Financial Officer of the University of North Texas (UNT) and the UNT System. There, he implemented a variety of new systems and procedures to strengthen the university’s financial position, leading to two upgrades to the UNT System credit rating. In 2009, Harris was named as CFO of the Year for the public sector by the Dallas Business Journal. 

For more than 27 years, Harris maintained impressive dual careers in higher education and simultaneous service in the Vermont Army National Guard. The Commonwealth of Virginia, of which VMFA is an agency, is committed to assisting transitioning military, National Guard and Reserve members and veterans to the civilian workforce. 

Harris retired from the Vermont Army National Guard in 2018, having achieved the rank of Colonel. His many decorations include the Bronze Star Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster, Combat Action Badge, Global War on Terror Campaign Medal, Afghanistan Campaign Medal, Armed Forces Reserve Medal with ‘M’ device, Meritorious Service Medal, Army Commendation Medal and Army Service Ribbon. 

Harris holds his undergraduate degree and MBA from Boston University Questrom School of Business. He earned a Masters of Strategic Studies from the U.S. Army War College.