Following a national search, Lance Bolton has been selected as the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign’s inaugural Deputy Chief Information Officer for Campus Engagement. Lance will join Technology Services on Aug. 10.
Lance brings more than 20 years of higher education technology leadership experience at the University of Iowa, where he built a strong reputation for fostering collaboration, strengthening governance, and aligning technology strategy across a complex and highly distributed institution.
Most recently, Lance served as Senior Director of Information Technology – Partnerships & Collaboration, reporting to the University of Iowa’s chief information officer. In that role, he strengthened partnerships between central and distributed IT organizations, improved campuswide communication and accountability, and helped guide technology priorities across the institution. He also developed the Core | Common | Unique framework, an approach to service ownership, prioritization, and investment that has become a foundational part of Iowa’s collaborative IT strategy.
Earlier in his career, Lance led the University of Iowa’s research technology organization, overseeing research computing, storage, and compliance services. He also spent more than a decade leading technology services for the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences, the university’s largest academic college. He holds a master’s degree in global security with a cybersecurity focus from Arizona State University.
As Deputy CIO for Campus Engagement, Lance will serve as a senior leader within the Office of the Chief Information Officer, working to strengthen communication, collaboration, and strategic alignment among Technology Services, colleges, schools, and administrative units. He will help advance shared governance, support strategic planning and prioritization, build strong campus partnerships, and lead initiatives that promote transparency and collaboration in support of Illinois’ missions of learning, discovery, engagement, and economic development.
Lance’s experience building partnerships between centralized and distributed IT organizations will be instrumental as Illinois continues advancing the goals of Boldly Illinois and Boldly IT. His collaborative leadership style and deep understanding of research university environments will help strengthen our technology community and support the university’s continued success.