Dear UMB Community:

I’m delighted to report that after an extensive national search, Alana Kyriakakis, JD, is the University of Maryland, Baltimore’s (UMB) new vice president and general counsel. The vice president and general counsel serves as the University’s chief legal officer, providing executive-level advice and direction on legal matters impacting the institution. Ms. Kyriakakis has served as acting general counsel since August 2022.

She joined UMB as university counsel in 2014 and has served as lead attorney and subject matter expert for all labor and employment law matters. She has provided training, presentations, and educational programs on a range of topics for internal and external audiences, and is a guest lecturer at the Francis King Carey School of Law. Ms. Kyriakakis serves on the UMBrella Group’s Advisory Board and was named a UMB Champion of Excellence in 2021 for her work supporting UMB during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Prior to joining UMB, Ms. Kyriakakis’ career as a university attorney began with institutions in the University System of Georgia, including serving as university counsel at Southern Polytechnic State and as attorney at the Medical College of Georgia. Before that, she worked for 10 years as an employment law litigator in private practice and as a special assistant attorney general representing public entities and higher education institutions in complex discrimination and employment litigation. She received her law degree from the University of South Carolina School of Law and her bachelor’s degree in communication from the University of Oklahoma.

I want to thank those who participated in our search, especially the search committee chaired by Susan C. Buskirk, DM, MS, vice president, chief accountability officer, and institutional official for human subjects research, and vice-chaired by Jon Kucskar, JD, special assistant to the president and assistant vice president for enterprise risk management, as well as everyone who met with the slate of candidates and provided meaningful input and feedback about the candidates and the search process.

I know that you will join me in congratulating Ms. Kyriakakis on her new position.

Sincerely,

Bruce E. Jarrell, MD, FACS

President