Chris Lynne was named the president of the University of Phoenix in December 2022. 

President Lynne works collaboratively with the Senior Leadership Team to further accelerate the university wide vision to be recognized as the most trusted provider of career-relevant higher education for working adults. He supports the university’s focus on continuous relentless improvement to maximize the value we offer to our students and brings an operations mindset to the role, serving as a strategic partner to all areas of the university to facilitate and expedite our return to growth.

A seasoned executive in higher education, Lynne’s early career included roles as senior vice president of finance, chief accounting officer, and head of shared services for Education Management Corporation. Moving to Arizona, Lynne joined Northcentral University in a dual chief financial officer and chief operating officer role. During his tenure at Northcentral, he helped the institution achieve a reaffirmation of accreditation with the Higher Learning Commission, led a successful recapitalization effort, and transformed the finance organization into a key strategic partner to the institution. He went on to serve in subsequent roles as president and chief operating officer of HotChalk, an online program management company, founded Transcend Education Group, and served as chief financial officer of Cadence Education.

Lynne holds a Bachelor of Science in Accounting from Purdue University and a Master of Business Administration from the Booth School of Business at University of Chicago.