Claudia Paz is chief business officer and senior associate dean for finance and administration for Vanderbilt University School of Medicine Basic Sciences. She serves as the dean’s senior advisor on finance, administration, and strategic operations and directs the financial and administrative areas that support the school’s academic and research goals.
Since joining Vanderbilt in 2019, Paz has led strategic financial planning, long-range modeling, forecasting, and financial and operational planning to align resources with institutional priorities and support data-driven decision-making, while overseeing the teams that support the school’s administrative functions. Her work is grounded in translating complex financial data into actionable insights that strengthen decision-making and support long-term sustainability. She works closely with university leadership on financial and policy matters impacting the school’s operations and long-term direction.
With more than 20 years of experience in higher education, Paz previously held senior financial leadership positions at Florida International University, including chief administrative officer for the Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine and assistant vice president for financial planning. In these roles, she contributed to the creation and legislative approval of the Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine and led institution-wide budget planning efforts, partnering with senior leaders and governing bodies to address funding challenges and advance strategic priorities.
She holds an engineering degree from Pontificia Universidad Javeriana and a Master of Science in Finance from Florida International University.