Executive Director, Business Services

Georgeann Smith joined the University of Houston in 1994, and she has been with the Division of Student Affairs’ Business Services since August 2016. As interim executive director, Smith oversees all business management and human resource functions for the Division, and she manages all budgetary and fiscal activities.

Leading a staff of 25, Smith has a rich budgetary and management experience in higher education. She has spearheaded the creation and implementation of business planning, strategic financial planning, and building relationships with non-profit and for-profit organizations to help secure outside funding for UH’s mission. Smith began her career with UH as the department business administrator for KUHF Radio and spent 18 years with Houston Public Media before moving over as director of business services for plant operations and university information technology. But before she came to UH, she worked for the oil field services industry, and she brought solid experience in working with compliance policies when she moved to higher ed.

As a business manager, Smith has nearly three decades of experience in working within federal, state, local, university and external compliance policies, and she serves on a number of committees on the UH campus and within the UH System.

Smith is also a UH alumna — she earned a Bachelor of Music Teacher Education from the University of Houston. She has served on the boards of a number of organizations, including the Houston Boychoir, the United Nations Association International Choir, and the Public Broadcasting Management Association.

Smith prides herself on her strategic perspective and her ability to think long-term, implement new initiatives seamlessly, and overseeing the daily financial and budgetary needs of the Division.