After a national search, the University of Washington Bothell has selected Christy Long from Penn State University as its new chief information officer (CIO).
Long serves as assistant vice chancellor for information technology (IT), heads the Information Technology Division and provides leadership for the overall direction of central technology services in support of the campus mission.
Starting Jan. 2, Long said she “hit the ground listening.”
“My big mission is to spend time and get to know people and understand the role they see IT playing in making them successful and then working with them to help shape a vision for technology on our campus,” Long said. “I’m looking for opportunities to engage with students, engage with faculty and staff, and just engage with the campus.
“I don’t want to make assumptions about what we need here,” she said. “I want to listen and learn and help UW Bothell deliver on its mission.”
Over 13 years at Penn State, Long served in a series of technical and leadership positions at the university, which has more than 97,000 students. She led and supported faculty research in the cloud, enterprise IT services, and IT operations and infrastructure. She also was the adviser for HackPSU, Penn State’s largest student-run technology club.
Long received a Bachelor of Science degree in biobehavioral health and an executive MBA from Penn State as well as a Master of Science degree in computer information systems from the University of Phoenix. Long served for several years on Penn State’s Commission for Women and served as its chair 2011-12. During her tenure, the commission recommended improvements for students, faculty and staff, including a breastfeeding support policy with lactation stations across campus.
At UW Bothell, Long takes over a position that had been filled on an interim basis by Kelli Trosvig following the departure of CIO Joe Shelley in 2017. Reporting to Vice Chancellor for Planning and Administration Ruth Johnston, Long also is a member of Chancellor Wolf Yeigh’s cabinet.
The allure of this region is one of the things that pulled Long to UW Bothell. “It’s where all the cool things are happening,” said Long. “We’re right in a tech corridor.
“I don’t consider myself an entrepreneur,” she added. “I consider myself more of an ‘intrapreneur.’ The definition of that is working within an organization to create change, do innovation, do new interesting things.”
Long lives close to campus and walks to work. She enjoys day hikes and biking. But even more than the outdoors, the support for diversity attracted Long to UW Bothell.
“It’s not just a stated value. It’s an actual value,” she said. “That’s something that has drawn me here, something I feel strongly about. So maybe it’s not geography that drew me here, maybe it’s more of the values.”
