As IU transitioned from former President Michael McRobbie to Pamela Whitten, the university’s leadership underwent significant changes. Only six of the 16 vice presidents under McRobbie during January in 2021 remain, with Whitten’s cabinet of 18 including some new roles or roles with altered titles and priorities.
Here’s everyone you need to know:
Pamela Whitten
IU’s 19th and first female president, Pamela Whitten, has led the university since 2021. Before IU, Whitten was president at Kennesaw State University in Georgia for three years. She has held titles at universities throughout her career, including provost at University of Georgia, several administrative and teaching roles at Michigan State University, a teaching position at Purdue and an administrative and teaching position at University of Kansas Medical Center.
Whitten was born in Tallahassee, Florida, living in the Midwest and Tennessee before moving to New England to attend a Rhode Island high school. She then left for Tulane University in Louisiana, where she received a bachelor’s degree in management. Whitten also has a master’s degree in communication from the University of Kentucky and a doctoral degree in communication studies from the University of Kansas.
In 2022, Whitten made $829,209 from IU, according to IndyStar. In August 2023, the Board of Trustees approved a $162,500 bonus for her second-year performance, the maximum allowed by her contract.
Rahul Shrivastav
Rahul Shrivastav serves as provost and executive vice president, a role he assumed Feb. 15, 2022.
His received undergraduate and graduate training in speech and hearing sciences from the University of Mysore in India and received a doctoral degree in the same field at IU.
Besides a faculty position at the University of Florida, Shrivastav has also spent time at Michigan State University and the University of Georgia. In fact, Shrivastav was vice president for instruction at UGA when Whitten was provost from 2014 to 2018.
Though the duties of a provost are not always clear, IU refers to the provost as the “chief academic officer.” The Chronicle of Higher Education describes the provost's role as managing the university, dealing with personnel matters, budgets, facilities and marketing revenue-generating activities. Alternatively, a university vice president is more of a visionary, ensuring the university stays true to its core mission, according to the Chronicle.
Shrivastav made $466,529 in 2022.
Jay Hess
Jay Hess is executive vice president for university clinical affairs in addition to his role as the School of Medicine dean. Before IU, Hess worked at the University of Michigan, University of Pennsylvania and Washington University School of Medicine.
Hess’s executive vice president role involves advising the president and trustees on issues related to health and coordinating IU’s eight health science schools.
In 2022, Hess made $1,020,796.
Carol Anne Murdoch-Kinch
Carol Anne Murdoch-Kinch was selected as interim IUPUI chancellor in June 2023. She also serves as dean of the School of Dentistry.
She made $356,008 as dean in 2022.
Susan Sciame-Giesecke
Susan Sciame-Giesecke is the vice president for regional campuses and online education at IU. She is responsible for IU’s five regional campuses and was previously the chancellor of IU Kokomo.
She made $430,183 in 2022.
Brenda Stopher
Appointed as Whitten’s chief of staff in 2022, Brenda Stopher advises the president on organizational issues and manages daily operations of the office. Stopher was previously vice president of enrollment at Kennesaw State University.
Stopher made $308,073 in 2022.
Dwayne Pinkney
Dwayne Pinkney was selected for the inaugural position of executive vice president for finance and administration late in 2021, working on long-term financial planning, budgets, capital financing and investments. Prior to IU, Pinkney was chief business officer at Virginia Tech and served in multiple administrative positions and University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
In 2022, Pinkney made $502,061.
Hillary Kahn
Hillary Kahn, interim vice president of international affairs, leads international programs. She also serves as associate vice chancellor for international affairs at IUPUI.
Hannah Buxbaum, who usually serves in the role, is on leave for the 2023-24 school year to be a visiting professor at the University of California, Berkeley School of Law.
Her salary was $352,245 in 2022.
Russell Mumper
Russell Mumper, the vice president for research, joined IU in July 2023 to oversee research activities as well as commercialization, innovation and relationships with the IU Foundation and business partners. Before IU, he worked with Whitten at the University of Georgia as vice provost for academic affairs and left in 2018 for the University of Alabama.
Nancy Paton
Nancy Paton, the chief communications and marketing officer at IU, works to improve IU’s academic reputation and brand perception. She held a similar role at the University of Florida before arriving at IU in the spring of 2022.
Paton made $312,502 in 2022.
J T. Forbes
J T. Forbes has been the president of the IU Foundation since Jan. 1, 2022. Besides his work at IU, Forbes has worked as director of government relations for Cummins, Inc., a multinational corporation that manufactures power generation products, and as a private sector staff lead for the U.S.-Brazil CEO Forum, which allows industry leaders to provide input to presidential offices in the U.S. and Brazil.
Rob Lowden
Rob Lowden, vice president for information technology, leads IT services and cybersecurity. He previously led the IT strategy for the School of Medicine. Lowden served in the U.S. Navy and has been with IU since 1998.
In 2022, Lowden made $377,298.
Scott Dolson
Scott Dolson has been IU’s director of intercollegiate athletics since spring 2020. Before that, he was deputy director for 11 years.
In addition to overseeing the department’s operations, Dolson directly supervises IU men’s basketball.
Dolson made $626,006 in 2022.
Todd Richardson
Todd Richardson, a labor and employment attorney, was appointed as vice president of human resources in 2022. Before IU, he was an executive for ExactTarget, which was later acquired by Salesforce.
Richardson’s salary is not available for 2022.
Thomas Morrison
Thomas Morrison was appointed as IU’s first vice president for capital planning and facilities in 2009. In addition to overseeing capital projects, Morrison is the university’s liaison to state and federal agencies when it comes to capital planning. Prior to the role, Morrison was IU’s chief liaison to the Indiana General Assembly.
Morrison made $363,263 in 2022.
Anthony Prather
Anthony Prather has served as general counsel, which involves representing IU in legal matters, since 2022. A Maurer School of Law alum, Prather was a partner with Barnes and Thornburg, a business law firm in Indianapolis, before coming to IU. At Barnes and Thornburg, his clients included Coca-Cola, Sears, the NCAA and Rolls-Royce PLC, an aerospace and defense company.
Prather made $399,678 in 2022.
Michael Huber
Michael Huber is vice president for university relations, a position dedicated to leading IU’s relationship with state and federal government, as well as business. Before he assumed the role in October 2022, Huber was the president of the Indianapolis Chamber. Before that, he served as deputy mayor for economic development under Indianapolis mayor and Republican Greg Ballard and worked in Gov. Mitch Daniels’ administration for three years.
James Wimbush
James Wimbush serves as vice president of diversity, equity and inclusion. Before the role, Wimbush had been a professor of business administration at IU since 1991. Wimbush had also served as dean of the University Graduate School but stepped down in July 2022 to focus on his role addressing DEI.
Wimbush made $333,515 in 2022.
Julie Payne-Kirchmeier
Julie Payne-Kirchmeier was tapped from Northwestern University in 2022 to join IU as vice president for student success. Tasked with overseeing increased support for students across all IU campuses, Payne-Kirchmeier's role is aligned closely with one of the three pillars of the IU 2030 Plan, Student Success and Opportunity.
Payne-Kirchmeier made $135,986 in 2022.
