As the head of the Administration and Finance Division, Carlucci will serve as the university's Chief Financial Officer and oversee Plant Operations, Human Resources and the Department of Public Safety.
"Carl is a seasoned and talented administrator who has been actively recruited by highly regarded universities nationally, and we are fortunate to have him accept this important position," said Renu Khator, UH System chancellor and UH president. "Our university and the entire UH System will benefit from his broad administrative experience and financial acumen. He has demonstrated experience in aligning resources with a vision for Tier One status. He certainly impressed our selection committee. I want to thank Don Birx, our vice president for research, for leading that committee."
Carlucci served for seven years as executive vice president and chief financial officer at the University of South Florida (USF), where he is credited with spearheading the development of USF's Research Park.
"When he got here, USF (had) talked about a research park since the '70s," said Michael Hoad, spokesperson for USF, but it was Carlucci who led the effort to organize and build it. The USF we know today is very different because of Carl."
Carlucci's leadership led to nine new buildings on the USF campus during his tenure, including two clinics and a faculty office building for the Health Sciences Center, two research buildings with research labs, core facilities and incubator space for spinoff biotech companies, 1000 beds of student housing and three new parking garages. None of the facilities was state funded, and Carlucci managed all aspects of financing through construction.
"Dr. Carlucci comes to the University of Houston with a wealth of experience in higher education financial leadership," said Joseph Kotarba, a professor of sociology and former president of the UH Faculty Senate who served on the selection committee. "His success in working with governmental agencies as well as the private sector bode well for our movement toward excellence. As a faculty member himself, Dr. Carlucci seems to understand the vision of superior research, teaching and service that the UH faculty share."
Carlucci previously served as executive vice president at SUNY-Albany, where he enjoyed similar success in funding research operations and buildings including a nanoscience building that is now home to the College of Nanoscale Engineering. He also worked to establish "shared resources," such as expensive equipment that researchers can rarely afford on their own, and funded facilities to support emerging research companies at the university.
"Every project is a team effort," Carlucci said. "There are high expectations for me at the University of Houston, and I look forward to working with President Khator and her team to achieve her vision of excellence and prominence."
Carlucci spent six years as secretary to the Ways & Means Committee for the state of New York. He also held positions at SUNY-Stony Brook and at Brooklyn College. He has a bachelor's degree in economics and a master's degree in urban and policy sciences, both from SUNY-Stony Brook, as well as Ph.D. in public administration from New York University.
"Although Carl is immersed in the world of finance, he is an academic at heart," said Dwayne Smith, senior vice provost at USF. "He is completely devoted to supporting an academic mission and likes to say that he has three rules for a university - faculty, faculty and faculty."
Carlucci succeeds John M. Rudley, who left the administration and finance position to assume the presidency of Texas Southern University (TSU) earlier this year. The division has been run on an interim basis by Jim McShan, whom President Khator thanked "for doing such an admirable job of keeping this crucial operation running so smoothly."
The Division of Administration and Finance, which employs approximately 800 people, provides a wide variety of services on behalf of the university, including maintenance of campus facilities, ensuring campus safety, providing food services, processing business transactions with vendors and students and all financial reporting.
Carlucci's appointment is subject to approval by the UH System Board of Regents.
A photograph of Carl Carlucci is available at: http://www.uh.edu/news-events/archive/nr/2008/04april/c-carlucciph.html
ABOUT THE UNIVERSITY OF HOUSTON SYSTEM
The University of Houston System is the state's only metropolitan higher education system, encompassing four universities and two multi-institution teaching centers. The universities are the University of Houston, a nationally recognized doctoral degree-granting, comprehensive research university; the University of Houston-Downtown, a four-year undergraduate university beginning limited expansion into graduate programs; and the University of Houston-Clear Lake and the University of Houston-Victoria, both upper division and master's-level institutions. The centers are the UH System at Sugar Land in Fort Bend and the UH System at Cinco Ranch. In addition, the UH System includes KUHF-FM, Houston's National Public Radio and classical radio station, and KUHT-TV, the nation's first educational television station.