Rebecca Vazquez-Skillings Appointed Vice President for Finance and Administration

Rebecca Vazquez-Skillings has been appointed Vice President for Finance and Administration, pending approval of the Board of Trustees. She assumes the role following the departure of Mike Frandsen in 2017. Vazquez-Skillings will begin her appointment on July 1, 2018.

“I’m pleased that Rebecca is joining Oberlin at this exciting time,” says President Carmen Twillie Ambar. “In a pool of high-quality candidates, Rebecca rose to the top not just for the depth of her experience, but also for her ability to think creatively with us as Oberlin responds to the rapidly changing landscape of higher education.”

Vazquez-Skillings brings to Oberlin extensive experience in finance and administration in the education and state government sectors. Most recently, she worked as the vice president for business affairs at Otterbein University, where she oversaw finance and accounting, budget planning and management, risk management, and facilities management and planning. During her tenure, her key accomplishments included making improvements to investment management, restructuring institutional debt, and implementing administrative technology systems. Prior to that, Vazquez-Skillings served as the assistant vice president for budget planning and analysis at Ohio University, where she had management responsibility for the university’s $625-million operating budget. Earlier in her career, she worked for the state of Ohio in both the Office of Budget and Management and the Office of the Governor.

Vazquez-Skillings values engagement in her community and profession and has served as a member of the Ohio Board of Education and National Association for College and University Business Officers Small Institutions Council, in addition to serving on several boards. She is a graduate of Kenyon College and the John Glenn School of Public Affairs at The Ohio State University.

“I am energized and humbled by the opportunity to join the Oberlin community and support its rich mission and vision for academic and artistic excellence, access, and social justice,” says Vazquez-Skillings.  “I look forward to collaborating with President Ambar, the Board of Trustees, our students, faculty, and staff.”