Following 32 years of dedicated service, Sylvia Lepe-Askari, Assistant Vice Chancellor - Campus Budget, will be retiring effective July 1, 2022.
Sylvia earned her Management Science degree from UC San Diego, Accounting Certificate from University Extension, and her Masters of Business Administration and Finance from San Diego State University. She began her UC San Diego career in 1990 serving in University Extension Business Services, Health Sciences Center for Molecular Medicine, and Education Studies before moving to the Campus Budget Office where she held various roles with progressively higher responsibility, and ultimately assuming her current AVC role in 2005.
Over the course of her career at UC San Diego, Sylvia acquired an in-depth knowledge of the academic and administrative budgetary needs and challenges facing the campus. She was part of the Chancellor-appointed Task Force on K-12 Outreach, participated in the financial planning and implementation of CREATE, played an integral role in the planning and financial negotiations with San Diego Unified for the establishment of the Preuss School and participated in efforts to examine the financial feasibility of a law school. Sylvia was part of early planning teams for the California Institute for Telecommunications and Information Technology (CALIT2), the Sanford Consortium for Regenerative Medicine; and the financial planning for Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Rady School of Management and Herbert Wertheim School of Public Health and Human Longevity Science. She guided the campus transition through new UC funding streams and re-benching models, provided leadership support to the annual budget development process, leading to rich conversations and programmatic alignment with impactful academic and student success investment decisions. She also lead a number of initiatives that simplify campus operations, financial management, and implement new budget systems; and developed the Campus Budget Office Team as a strategic and trusted partner of our academic and administrative units. Today, Sylvia oversees a total operating budget approaching $7 billion, several times the size of the $2 billion operation that she took over in 2005.
Sylvia has been a friend, colleague, strategic advisor, and mentor to many within the UC San Diego community. Her career at UC San Diego is remembered with integrity, professional ethics, and a passionate dedication to the mission of University. She is a highly respected and valued colleague and many, including me, will miss her deeply.
An announcement regarding Sylvia’s successor is forthcoming.
Please join me in extending our most sincere appreciation to Sylvia for her 32 years of lasting contributions and superb service to UC San Diego.
