Jessie Minton, vice provost and chief information officer at the University of Oregon, has been appointed vice chancellor for technology and chief information officer at Washington University in St. Louis, effective April 15, according to Shantay Bolton, executive vice chancellor and chief administrative officer. Minton will succeed Stephanie L. Reel, who has served as interim chief information officer since October 2020.
An accomplished leader and information technology professional with deep expertise in health care and biomedical research technology, Minton has served since 2017 in her current role, in which she has oversight of the development and execution of information technology strategy, operations and investments for the University of Oregon, as well as leadership of Information Services, the central IT organization for the university.
“In Jessie Minton, we have found a smart, capable and dynamic leader to take our information technology enterprise into the future,” Bolton said. “We’re fortunate to be able to recruit such a talented individual to this important position and we look forward to welcoming her to the WashU and St. Louis communities. We also are exceptionally grateful to Stephanie Reel for her service in the interim role, especially during such a challenging time for the university and our region. Thanks to both of these outstanding women, we know we’ll have a successful transition into the next era of information technology at the university.”
Among her accomplishments, Minton led the University of Oregon’s transition to full remote learning during the COVID-19 pandemic and launched a Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA)-compliant telehealth platform, virtual computer labs, secure videoconferencing, and services to support students with financial need through technology loaner programs. She also was responsible for facilitating research through the connectivity of campus to peer institutions at 100G speeds, as well as an on-campus network redesign and the launch in collaboration with state partners in government and higher education of the nonprofit Link Oregon, a high-speed, high-capacity, fiber-optic research and education network serving the state of Oregon’s public and nonprofit sectors.
Minton previously served as director of business operations and technical support services in the central IT organization of Oregon Health & Science University. In this role, she led one of five divisions within the information technology group for the highly ranked academic medical center with education, research and health-care missions, an operating budget of $3.9 billion, and 18,500 staff, faculty and researchers. She was responsible for project execution and portfolio management, performance improvement, development and support of business operations applications, administration, human resources, communications and training.Her experience also includes stints in the private sector at Yahoo and Change Healthcare (formerly WebMD Business Services).
In her new role, Minton will lead a universitywide strategy for information technology and oversee the delivery of current and new IT systems and services. She will contribute to the development of overarching strategies for computing resources in support of the university’s mission of teaching, learning, research and patient care.
“Jessie Minton is exactly the kind of person we need to take on leadership of IT, a role that is absolutely essential for all of our aspirations as an institution,” said David H. Perlmutter, MD, executive vice chancellor for medical affairs and dean of the School of Medicine. “She has the vision and expertise to lead us so that information technology enables innovation and advances in knowledge and education in every part of the university and puts us in a position to continue to make the most important contributions to our communities.”
“I am honored to be entrusted by Dr. Shantay Bolton and Dr. David Perlmutter to lead the next iteration of service excellence and strategic vision for information technology at WashU,” Minton said. “The opportunity to bring technology to bear in contributing to the transformation envisioned by Chancellor Martin is incredibly inspiring, and I believe wholeheartedly that by collaborating across the university and medical center, we have an unparalleled moment to make lasting impacts through research, in the classroom and through clinical practice. I am looking forward to joining the WashU and St. Louis community and embracing all they have to offer.”
A graduate of the University of Oregon with a bachelor’s degree in anthropology, Minton also earned a master’s degree in management and organizational leadership from Warner Pacific College. She was selected as a fellow and completed the IT Leadership Program of the Northwest Academic Computing Consortium, for which she also serves as a member of the board of directors. She also is a founding member and treasurer of Link Oregon.
An avid equestrian, Minton competes in hunters and jumpers with her show horses, Hank and Ray, who will be joining her and her husband, Kris, and labrador, Maui, in St. Louis.
