Senior Vice President
Senior Vice President and Treasurer
Message from the Senior Vice President and Treasurer
The division of Finance and Administration is organized and operated to provide premier service to the university in the stewardship of its human, physical, financial, technological and informational resources. The staff members of Finance and Administration are among the most talented and dedicated professionals in higher education. Learn more about Finance and Administration >
University Town Hall Recording
A recording of the 2025 University Town Hall is available on the Zoom Webinar. To access it, log in using your RIT Account.
Biography
Dr. James Watters is Senior Vice President of Finance and Administration and Treasurer. He oversees the activity of over 880 full-time employees and 1,500 student workers. He is responsible for administering the university’s annual $1.1 billion operating budget and $337 million capital budget; $1.6 billion endowment and working capital portfolios; and $400 million public debt portfolio. Dr. Watters is responsible for the departments within the Division of Finance and Administration.
He is vice chair of RIT’s Global Delivery Corporation which overseas RIT’s international campuses located in Zagreb and Dubrovnik, Croatia; Pristina, Kosovo; Dubai; and China. He holds the position of chairman of the RIT Croatia Board of Trustees and trustee for RIT Dubai’s Board of Trustees.
Dr. Watters serves on several non-profit and for-profit boards, including the New York Kitchen, Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra, Broadstone Net Lease Board of Directors, and Canandaigua National Bank Board of Directors.
Dr. Watters came to RIT from the University of Pittsburgh, where he spent his academic and previous professional years and earned a BS, MS, and Ph.D.
Campus Aesthetics Committee
The architecture of RIT is characterized by a high degree of recognized design excellence, and was purposefully designed in a consistent vocabulary of architectural form.
It is imperative that any proposal to change or add to the campus environment be subject to close analysis and regulation.
It is the role of the Campus Aesthetics Committee to fulfill this responsibility in an advisory role to the Senior Vice President of Finance and Administration.
In the News
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March 7, 2025
![Two students collaborate at a table in a classroom, one holding a pen and writing while the other leans in to assist. Books, papers, and a water bottle are on the table, with other students in the background.]()
Campus Connect brings programming to students on their home turf
Campus Connect provides programs that help students engage with faculty, participate in workshops, and connect with peers, all in a convenient residence hall location.
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November 6, 2024
![four people sit next to each other at a table discussing staff architechture.]()
Staff Career Architecture Project will help staff explore career pathways
Upon implementation in about 18 months, the large-scale project, which launched in summer 2024, will offer staff members and their managers a clear framework for how jobs, career levels, and pathways for growth are structured across the university.
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September 11, 2024
![a white SUV that has Public Safety logos on it sits in front of the Gene Polisseni Center.]()
RIT uses new technology upgrades and increased training to keep campus safe
Thanks to new technologies and training, the 43-member Public Safety department is now able to better manage the expansive campus and respond to the thousands of calls or safety checks they handle each year.
Signatory Authority
Visit this page for information: Signatory Authority
