Cinnamon Blair named chief strategic communication officer and vice chancellor

Colleagues,

I am writing to let you know we have selected a talented leader to oversee our communications and marketing efforts at the University of Kansas.

It is my pleasure to announce Cinnamon Blair, chief marketing and communications officer at The University of New Mexico, as our new chief strategic communication officer and vice chancellor.

In this role, Cinnamon will lead all communications, marketing, branding and message integration across all KU units, campuses and affiliates. As a member of our University Cabinet, she will serve as an advisor to me and senior leaders on issues of communications, marketing and public affairs. Additionally, she will serve as KU’s liaison with communications partners throughout the higher education community.

Cinnamon’s background in higher education communications makes her a terrific fit for this role. At UNM, she is a member of the president’s leadership team and serves as the university's senior advisor on communications, media and public relations, and marketing initiatives. She directs and manages UNM's strategic marketing and communications functions, including branding, strategic planning, social media strategies, media and public relations, and critical events strategies. In doing so, she ensures the university is communicating with one voice to all stakeholder groups, including students, faculty, staff, alumni, donors, state lawmakers and federal officials.

In her time at UNM, Cinnamon has built and led UNM’s first centralized communications and marketing function, aligning brand, reputation and messaging priorities across academic, research, health sciences and NCAA Division I athletics programs. Additionally, she directed the university’s most comprehensive rebranding initiative, resulting in award-winning campaigns, strong campus adoption and millions of dollars in operational savings through streamlined services and vendor consolidation. Given these achievements, I am confident Cinnamon is well positioned to enhance the way our communications and marketing strategies support our institutional goals.

Cinnamon’s first day at KU will be September 15. In the meantime, Joe Monaco, associate vice chancellor for public affairs, will serve as the interim vice chancellor. You can reach out to Joe with any communications questions or needs you have between now and September.

Please join me in welcoming Cinnamon to her new role. I know she can count on your support as we work together to fulfill our mission of education, service and research.

Respectfully,

Doug

Douglas A. Girod
Chancellor
University of Kansas