Executive Vice President for Operations, Finance, & Support
Kelly Fox is a senior executive with more than 25 years of experience in higher education.
As the executive vice president for Operations, Finance, & Support, Fox oversees Internal Audit, Operational Excellence & Engagement, Human Resources, Budget and Finance, Transformational Technology & Innovation, the Office of Information Technology, Campus Services & Sustainability, Campus Safety, and Real Estate and Facilities. Other responsibilities span the entire institution, including all divisions of the undergraduate, graduate, and professional school programs. Although Kelly reports directly to the president, she also works with Rice’s provost on academic budgets and is a key strategic partner with other leaders at Rice.
Before joining Rice, Fox was executive vice president and chief budget officer at the Georgia Institute of Technology. In this role, Fox led the financial management and planning activities for the university’s $2.3 billion budget. She also provided leadership, oversight, and direction for the institute’s division of administration and finance, which includes financial management and reporting; budgeting; human resources; business services; campus sustainability; facilities planning, design, construction, maintenance, and operations; campus safety; information systems and technology; campus planning; and real estate development. More than 1,200 staff reported to Kelly’s division.
Before joining Georgia Tech, Fox led the strategic resources and support team at the University of Colorado Boulder, guiding the financial management and planning activities of its $1.8 billion budget. She oversaw nearly $1 billion in capital improvement projects and improved access to the university by simplifying tuition and fees and increasing aid initiatives. She also began a financial overhaul project to generate new revenues from non-traditional sources, eliminating unnecessary duplication of services, reexamining the university’s procurement strategy, and enhancing the utilization of gifts.
Fox spent nearly 20 of her years in higher education at the University of Colorado System Office, Colorado School of Mines, and the University of Colorado Boulder. She has received numerous leadership and administrative honors and served on many national higher-education governing and advisory boards. Fox earned her Master of Public Administration degree from the University of Colorado Denver and her Bachelor of Science in Psychology from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.