The University of Kansas has hired a new director of information technology for its Lawrence and Edwards campuses.

Mary Walsh, currently an assistant vice president at Tulane University, will start her new role as KU’s chief information officer on July 1, the university announced in a news release earlier this week.

Walsh has 30 years experience in information technology as it relates to higher education and research, according to the release.

Mary Walsh

“I am excited we are bringing someone with Mary’s vision, knowledge, breadth of experience and leadership style to the university,” KU Provost Neeli Bendapudi said in the release. “I’m confident she will be able to lead KU Information Technology in directions that support and enhance KU’s strategic goals and also ensure students and scholars are able to achieve their professional and academic objectives.”

Walsh will manage KU’s IT department, which has about 275 employees and provides numerous services in support of the university’s various academic and administrative departments.

She was one of three candidates invited to campus for interviews around the beginning of April. The candidates were identified by a search committee made up of KU faculty, staff and students.

The other candidates were Max Davis-Johnson, chief information officer at Boise State University, and Kenneth Pink, deputy chief information officer at the University of Utah.

KU’s previous CIO, Bob Lim, resigned from his position in June 2017 to start a new job at San Jose State University.