Mark Joseph, the Leona Bevis and Marguerite Haynam Associate Professor of Community Development in the Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences, assumed the helm as chair of the University Budget Committee (UBC) July 1. Joseph succeeds Christopher Cullis, the Francis Hobart Herrick Professor of Biology in the College of Arts and Sciences, who has served as chair since the committee’s inception in 2010.
“The UBC has made some fantastic strides in recent years and I’m grateful to Chris for his many years of leadership,” said Provost and Executive Vice President Ben Vinson III. “Mark is sure to bring his unique set of experiences to the role and I’m excited about what the future holds.”
The UBC serves as an advisory body to the provost and chief financial officer and is charged with oversight of the university’s budgeting and forecasting models. Importantly, the UBC takes a university view, as opposed to a school or unit viewpoint.
Cullis’ near-decade of service to the UBC has afforded him the opportunity to work with various schools and administrative units to craft unique solutions and enable innovative activities. “Seeing the implementation of UBC recommendations and subsequently hearing that they have made a difference has been very rewarding,” he said. Now, he is confident that his successor will quickly adapt to the new role.
“Mark is very well organized and driven,” Cullis said. “I am confident he will listen to and engage the members of the committee and the wider university community in all deliberations.”
Joseph is eager to serve as UBC chair because of its unique and vital function at the university. “There are very few committees on campus where members are charged explicitly to leave their school hats at the door and focus together on the bigger picture,” he said.
Under Joseph’s leadership, the UBC hopes to assess the current budget model and make recommendations for modifications and enhancements that will position Case Western Reserve for more effective implementation of the new strategic plan.
“Recent successful policy changes based on UBC analyses and recommendations have positioned us to think even more expansively about ways to help the university,” Joseph said. “I’m excited about what’s in store.”