Provost, Vice Presidents, & Secretary of the University
Nim Chinniah
Vice President for Administration and Chief Financial Officer
5801 S. Ellis Avenue, 502
Chicago, IL 60637
Phone: 773.702.8188
nim.chinniah@uchicago.edu
Nim Chinniah is the Vice President for Administration and Chief Financial Officer at the University of Chicago. He has overall responsibility for the Administration and Finance Division of the University, which comprises more than 400 staff in several departments, including Facilities Services, Human Resources Management, Risk Management and Audit, Comptroller, Business Diversity, and Real Estate Operations. Other responsibilities include fiscal and strategic planning and support of University of Chicago Trustee Committees including Audit, Compensation, Financial Planning, and Campus Planning & Facilities.
Chinniah came to the University of Chicago from Vanderbilt University where he held several positions over a sixteen year period. As the Deputy Vice Chancellor for Administration and Academic Affairs at Vanderbilt University, he served as the chief financial officer for academic affairs and as the principal deputy to the Vice Chancellor for Administration and CFO. He managed areas including the police department, plant operations (buildings, grounds, utilities), real estate, golf course, dining, printing, mail, traffic and parking, bookstores, and university registrar.
In announcing the appointment, President Zimmer said, “In Nim’s 16 years at Vanderbilt, he has obtained a broad set of experiences in finance, administration and academic planning. Nim has built an excellent reputation on his ability to greatly improve the managerial capacity of administrative units, develop effective financial and budgeting systems in support of the academic mission, and lead successful planning efforts in a wide range of areas. We are delighted to have him join the leadership team at Chicago.”
Chinniah earned an M.B.A. from Vanderbilt University and a B.S. in computer science and business (summa cum laude) from Lambuth University.
He received the “Rising Star” award in 2003 from the National Association of College and University Business Officers. He also has served as chairman of the Nashville Human Relations Commission, a position appointed by the mayor of Nashville. He served as a member of the First Tennessee Bank Nashville Advisory Board and on the board of the Boys and Girls Clubs of Middle Tennessee and the Adventure Science Center, among many other professional affiliations.
Chinniah resides in Hyde Park with his wife and daughter.
- Related document: CFO functional org chart (PDF)