Christopher Misra Named Vice Chancellor for Information Technology and CIO at UMass Amherst

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AMHERST, Mass. – Christopher Misra, who has provided leadership in a wide range of technology areas for over two decades at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, has been named vice chancellor for information technology and chief information officer (CIO) following a national search. The appointment was made by Chancellor Kumble R. Subbaswamy.

Subbaswamy said, “I am confident that Christopher Misra’s strategic vision and deep knowledge of technology, with the continued help of our dedicated IT staff, will build on the progress made in recent years in providing the campus community state-of-the-art information technology services and lay the groundwork for innovation.”

Misra said, “My professional career has been dedicated to the mission of public higher education. I am fortunate to be both the product of and a contributor to a world-class education at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. I’m honored to be provided this new opportunity by Chancellor Subbaswamy to serve the university.”

For the past year, Misra has served as interim vice chancellor and CIO. A graduate of UMass Amherst, Misra holds a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering. He has worked on campus since 1996, when he joined the staff as a network specialist. In 23 years with UMass, Misra has served in many capacities, including two years as interim deputy CIO overseeing IT operations with 225 staff delivering IT services to the campus, three years as chief technology officer, and four years as the associate CIO for information security. In addition, for many years he taught a class on computer and network security as an instructor in the department of computer science.

Misra has also served in several past and present leadership positions including: board member of the Northeast Research and Education Network; Technical Advisory Committee of InCommon Federation; chair of the Technical Advisory Committee for the Research and Education Network Information Security and Analysis Center; a member of the leadership team of the Higher Education Information Security Council; and as chair of the Internet2 Security Advisory Group. He also has presented at several national conferences on IT security, sustainable scalable campus network architecture and the future of IT.