Christopher Sedore named chief information officer

Christopher Sedore was appointed Tufts' vice president and chief information officer (CIO) — where he’ll oversee Tufts Technology Services (TTS) — on July 10. Sedore, transitioning from the same role at the University of Texas at Austin, began his new position Aug. 5.

Announcing his appointment July 10, University President Anthony Monaco and Executive Vice President Michael Howard wrote in an email that Sedore had experience in information technology, online education and analytics.

“With both breadth and depth of expertise, [Sedore] has proven himself as a professional who sees information technology as a strategic tool that can advance and strengthen institutions,” they said.

Working within higher education, including over twenty years at Syracuse University, Sedore oversaw a 160-employee organization and the launch of a green data center in partnership with IBM and New York, according to the email.

Later, Sedore served as an associate vice chancellor for academic operations at Syracuse, where he expanded the school's online programs. 

Speaking about his new role, Sedore told the Daily that the responsibilities associated with CIOs have shifted rapidly.

“Responsibilities for CIOs have expanded generally with the importance of IT increasing for research universities like Tufts as the use of technology for teaching and learning has grown,” Sedore told the Daily in an email.

Sedore emphasized the role TTS has to play in supporting student and faculty research while increasing awareness about cybersecurity on campus.

“The increasing capabilities of high-performance computing have helped researchers conquer more (and bigger) questions. Increasing concerns about cybersecurity and information privacy as well as increased regulation have also added to the responsibilities of CIOs,” Sedore said.

Paul Bergen, director of educational technology and learning spaces within TTS, told the Daily that Sedore's experiences at other schools will help guide the direction of TTS.

“[Sedore] brings a wealth of experience in higher education and we are eager to help him develop his vision for TTS, continue developing criteria and processes for prioritizing TTS work, and strengthen our practices for continuously improving the processes through which that work is delivered,” Bergen told the Daily in an email.

Bergen also shared the attitude that he and his colleagues look forward to working with Sedore.

“Work in IT organizations is always changing. That’s why we love it. And the entire organization is thrilled for the energy and vision Chris brings to our university,” he said.

Theresa Regan, director of enterprise operations and infrastructure within TTS, also works closely with Sedore. Regan told the Daily in an email that she looks forward to having Sedore to help better serve the needs of students and researchers and align TTS to better support the Tufts' mission.

“TTS has always worked to serve the needs of students and researchers, and we look forward to working with Chris as he develops and advances a comprehensive vision for transforming IT across the university in a way that continues to benefit students, faculty and staff,” Regan said.

Sedore told the Daily he has a number of goals that he’s eager to begin working on.

“In the near term, I will be getting to know Tufts and the wonderful community of students, faculty, and staff. I look forward to engaging broadly with all of those groups," he said. "In the long term, we have many opportunities where technology will enhance teaching and learning and research. I plan to work with the community (including students) to ensure that we use new capabilities to keep Tufts at the forefront of teaching and research."

Speaking to Tufts' current position in terms of technology, and the technology challenges he sees ahead for Tufts and higher education institutions at large, Sedore sees increasing opportunities to use technology within research.

“Tufts is in a strong position at present. Looking out over the next five to ten years, technology will play an ever-larger role in research, with new analytics and visualization capabilities driving new discoveries. Similarly, we will see advances in teaching and learning with new ways to interact with information, explore data, and collaborate over distances," he said.

Sedore added that Tufts faces similar challenges as other institutions of higher education which technology can help solve.