Allen named to new UM System IT post

MU’s chief information officer was appointed by University of Missouri System President Elson Floyd as the UM vice president of information technology, combining the two positions to reduce costs.

As MU’s chief information officer, Gary Allen has “improved customer service, gotten the most out of limited IT resources and established sound relationships with faculty, staff and students,” Floyd said in a press release.

As vice president of information technology, Allen will oversee information technology at the UM campuses, MU Health Care and statewide extension programs.

He will also assume responsibility for MOREnet, a statewide research and education network, and MOBIUS, a statewide library service used by libraries and public schools, including colleges and universities.

For his roles with the UM system and MU, Allen will be paid $185,000. By combining the UM position with the MU chief information officer position, the university will save $137,000, according to the release.

Allen also serves as executive director of the University of Missouri Bioinformatics Consortium and as an associate vice president for information technology for the UM System.

He previously served as the director of advanced computing environments in the Office of Information Access and Technology Services and director of information technology in the College of Veterinary Medicine at MU. Allen is a faculty member in the College of Veterinary Medicine’s department of veterinary pathobiology.