News

Internal Revenue Service Announces Standard Mileage Rate for 2025

The Internal Revenue Service has announced the standard mileage rate for 2025. Syracuse University employees may use this rate to calculate the deductible costs of operating an automobile for business purposes.

Effective Jan. 1, 2025, the standard mileage rate is set at 70 cents per mile for business miles driven (up 3 cents from the 2024 rate of 67 cents per mile).

The rates apply to electric and hybrid-electric vehicles, as well as gasoline and diesel-powered vehicles.

Employees with questions can reach out to the Comptroller’s Office at 314.443.3765.

Kelly Flannery Joins Office of Chief Financial Officer

Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Brett Padgett announces the hiring of Kelly Flannery ‘00 into the key role of Senior Associate Vice President (SAVP) for Finance in the Office of the Chief Financial Officer (CFO). She will begin her tenure on Monday, January 13.

Flannery has spent years in high-level financial positions for city governments, most recently as the Director of Finance for the metropolitan government of Nashville and Davidson County, Tenn, where she directed an annual operating budget in excess of $5 billion. Prior to her time in Nashville, she held the role of chief financial officer for the city of Charlotte and also spent 10 years in increasingly senior roles in the city of Chicago’s finance department.

Flannery will manage three financial units within the division: the Office of the Comptroller, led by Associate Vice President and Comptroller Jean Gallipeau, the Office of the Treasurer, led by Associate Vice President and Treasurer Scott Kemp, and the Strategic Procurement department, led by the soon-to-be-hired Assistant Vice President for Procurement.

Her work will include long-term strategic planning, coordinating across units within the Office of the CFO and with other University divisions to ensure sound financial structures remain in place as the University embarks on several multi-year projects, including the Strategic Housing Plan and the operationalization of the Academic Strategic Plan, which includes the expansion of the College of Engineering and Computer Science. Flannery will deepen the division’s commitment to strategic procurement, financial planning and analysis, and will serve as the Office of the CFO’s representative on the University’s coordinated risk and compliance committee.

Flannery is a Syracuse alumnus, graduating in 2000 with a degree in international relations with a concentration in foreign policy and decision making. She then went on to earn her MPA at the University of North Carolina-Charlotte in 2004.

Syracuse University Pursuing Development of New Full-Service Hotel on University Avenue

As part of its comprehensive housing strategy, Syracuse University today announced its intention to pursue the development of a new full-service hotel to be constructed on University Avenue. This effort follows the University’s recent conversion of the former Sheraton Syracuse University Hotel & Conference Center into Orange Hall, a residence hall that now houses roughly 400 students. It also builds on the University’s recent acquisition of the Hotel Skyler Syracuse.

Read the full story at Syracuse University News.

University to Demolish Marion and Kimmel Halls and Comstock Avenue Garage in Preparation of New Residence Halls Construction

As Syracuse University continues to advance its comprehensive housing strategy, later this month it will begin demolition of several structures to make way for two new residence halls. The housing strategy, first announced in February 2024, includes demolishing Marion Hall, Kimmel Hall and Dining Center, and Comstock Avenue Garage. Work on Marion and Kimmel halls will begin in December, while the demolition of Comstock Avenue Garage is expected to start in early 2025 following the permitting process. Parking Services staff will connect with each Comstock Avenue Garage permit holder directly to coordinate new parking assignments.

Read the full story at Syracuse University News.

Office of the Chief Financial Officer Releases Updated Travel Policy

The University has updated its policy governing University travel, including new guidance around hotel and meals reimbursement, allowing for trip insurance as a reimbursable expense, and encouraging travelers to New York City to utilize the University’s Joseph I. Lubin House as overnight lodging. The updated policy will be available on Jan. 1, 2025, and is applicable to all faculty, staff and students traveling on University business.

Read the full story at Syracuse University News.

New Promotional Product Ordering Process Benefits Syracuse Nonprofit

The University’s printing vendor, Dupli, has partnered with a local nonprofit, the Good Life Youth Foundation, to streamline the purchase of branded University apparel and promotional products.

The new partnership is a result of months of work overseen by the University’s Purchasing department. Staff there had long desired to offer an easy, centralized solution to University departments looking to buy licensed, branded apparel or giveaways for campus events in bulk.

Read the full story at Syracuse University News.

Office of the Chief Financial Officer Releases Updated University Gift Policy

Syracuse University has updated its policy governing gifts, including retirement and life event gifts, charitable gifts and unallowable gifts. The updated policy, which applies to all University faculty, staff and students, can be found here.

Some items of note included within the policy:

  • Life event gifts to employees: These tangible gifts (such as flowers) may be presented to the employee as an expression of celebration in the event of the birth or adoption of a child; an expression of concern in the event an employee has an illness, is hospitalized or undergoes surgery; or an expression of sympathy in the event of the death of the employee or a member of the employee’s immediate family or household. Historically, the policy limited the gift value to $75, but the updated policy will increase this limit to $150 per gift.

Read the full story at Syracuse University News.

Isaiah Lopez Named Executive Director for Risk Management

Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Brett Padgett announces the hiring of Isaiah Lopez, the University’s Executive Director for Risk Management. Lopez, who reports directly to Padgett, began his tenure at Syracuse University on September 9, 2024.

Lopez brings years of risk management and insurance oversight experience to Syracuse. He most recently worked at the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine, where he had spent 10 years in increasingly senior roles before being named Chief Risk Management Officer in 2023.

As the head of the risk management team, Lopez will develop strategies and processes to identify, measure, and manage risks while serving as a resource for faculty, staff, and students on issues related to insurance, risk identification, and mitigation. He will manage the University’s captive insurance program, Orange Insurance, LLC, as well as compliance for the programs involving the University’s minors on campus policy.

Risk Management will coordinate with departments across campus, including the Office of Compliance, Internal Audit, and the Office of the General Counsel, to lead a variety of programs and initiatives designed to reduce the University’s overall risk profile.

Lopez will also reinforce procedures that ensure compliance with the University’s insurance policy requirements, while also managing the University’s relationships with insurance brokers, third-party claims administrators, and other external consultants.

Prior to his career at the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine, Lopez spent seven years as a risk management specialist at The Rothman Institute, also in Philadelphia. He earned his bachelor’s degree in strategic communications at Temple University.