Associate Provost, Finance and Administration

 
As Associate Provost of Finance and Administration, Edward C. (Craig) Ness oversees administrative and financial matters in Academic Affairs. He actively participates with the Senior Vice President and his management team in the development of the budget for all of Academic Affairs, and serves on the Provost’s Cabinet. Mr. Ness is responsible for implementing the Senior Vice President’s financial plan and for oversight of the budgets and financial operations of the colleges as well as supervision of the administrative operations of the Division of Academic Affairs, colleges and libraries. He works with the colleges and the administrative offices of the university to implement procedures for compliance with applicable statutes, regulations, university policies and procedures, and with terms and conditions of gifts, grants and contracts, and is responsible for training of college budget and business staff.

The Assistant Vice President establishes and maintains the internal controls in Academic Affairs to provide assurance that resources are used properly and safeguarded against waste, loss and misuse, consisting of procedures for separation of duties, assurance of proper authorizations, security of assets and records, and review and reconciliation of general ledger statements. He is responsible for monitoring of transactions and the reporting of any inappropriate activity, losses or irregularity with Academic Affairs.

Mr. Ness also serves as liaison with the Division of Administration and Finance on budget matters, and assists in the oversight of academic space and project. He is currently serving as well as the project director for the University of Houston’s data warehouse and has served as director for the UH System’s PeopleSoft Financial and Student and Academic Administration implementations.