Gregg Goldman Leaving UCLA to Join Hillspire, LLC

Campus Update

Chancellor Block shared the following message with the UCLA campus community.

Dear Bruin Community:

Vice Chancellor and Chief Financial Officer Gregg Goldman has informed me that he will be leaving UCLA on April 1 to become chief financial officer and senior vice president of finance for Hillspire, LLC, the integrated family office of Eric and Wendy Schmidt, serving all of their philanthropic activities and programs, such as the Schmidt Family Foundation and Schmidt Ocean Institute. While this is a great loss for our campus, I am excited for Gregg and know that he will excel in his new role, bringing the same dedication and commitment that he has brought to UCLA.

Gregg has been a dedicated leader and wise counselor to me and my administration on every aspect of managing UCLA’s finances. He deserves distinct recognition for achieving this during the pandemic, which caused unprecedented interruptions in UCLA’s revenue stream. Despite this challenge, we were able to avoid any layoffs of career employees, a significant achievement, even as the pandemic’s financial impact was greater here than at any other UC campus. Gregg’s prudence in managing and investing our finances helped UCLA build a strong foundation that has helped us weather this crisis.

Gregg assumed his current role in October 2018 after serving as senior vice president for business affairs and CFO at the University of Arizona. Prior to that, he was senior associate dean and CFO for the USC Marshall School of Business, senior assistant dean for the UC Irvine Graduate School of Management, and director of financial services for the UCLA Library system until 1996. A past board chair of the National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO), Gregg is a graduate of Thomas Edison State College and California State Polytechnic University, Pomona.

As vice chancellor and CFO, Gregg oversaw management of all aspects of UCLA’s approximately $9.5 billion budget and a number of critical campus units, including Academic Planning and Budget, Capital Programs, Capital Finance, Business and Financial Solutions, and Real Estate and Asset Management. He also served in an ex-officio role on the boards of the UCLA Foundation and the UCLA Investment Company, and serves on other external boards at the request of the chancellor. Additionally, Gregg served on many committees and assignments for the UC Office of the President, including their Executive Budget Committee, University of California Retirement System Advisory Board and the Global Climate Leadership Council.

Since his arrival, Gregg has created a financial sustainability plan to ensure that UCLA’s financial health will be even stronger in the decades to come. Among his many achievements, Gregg worked with colleagues across campus to help redefine financial transparency and accountability between UCLA Health and the main campus; supported work and further development of the Bruin Budget Model; developed a liquidity model to project future cash needs, ensuring our investment portfolio performs at optimum levels; helped Capital Programs effectively manage over $1.2B in active projects, including the La Kretz Botany Building Renovation and Rosenfeld Hall Expansion and Renovation; established a Campus Capital Portal that has helped define project objectives, identify funding plans and properly address space utilization; and, in collaboration with the UCLA Foundation, initiated and chaired a committee that I appointed to review the UCLA Investment Company as it nears its 10-year anniversary.

Gregg has been a true asset to UCLA and he will be deeply missed. Soon we will announce an interim appointment to Gregg’s role until a permanent successor is named.

Please join me in thanking Gregg for his service to UCLA and wishing him all the best in his new role.

Sincerely,