Kaplan Highter Education names St. Norbert grad, Lionel Lenz, chief financial officer

From Kaplan Higher Education, August 26, 2009
by Michele Mazur, mmazur@khec.com, (312) 385-1202

Kaplan Higher Education has appointed Lionel Lenz, 52, as chief financial officer of Kaplan Higher Education. As CFO, Lenz is responsible for the strategic financial leadership of the division, including management of accounting, collections, financial planning and analysis and oversight of financial aid operations. Kaplan Higher Education includes the online operations of Kaplan University and its law school, Concord Law School; more than 70 campuses across the United States; Kaplan Virtual Education, a leading provider of online 6-12 education; and Colloquy, a provider of integrated distance learning services to academic institutions. Lenz reports to Jeffrey J. Conlon, president and chief executive officer of Kaplan Higher Education.

"Lionel has a proven track record in managing the finance function for geographically and business diverse organizations, realizing efficiencies and implementing quality initiatives," Conlon said. His ability to stay acutely focused on various financial needs and regulations, combined with his strategic background position Lionel well to help Kaplan Higher Education continue to evolve with our and our students' growing needs."

Most recently, Lenz served as executive vice president of finance with HSBC North America, where he established the finance and accounting team in India while supporting the North America CFO department. Lenz also served as the CFO of HSBC Technology and Services.

Prior to his work at HSBC, Lenz spent 14 years with Household International, in a variety of positions of increased responsibility including director of business strategy and development. In that capacity, he developed several growth strategies focused around customer acquisition and retention and managed investor banking relationships.

Lenz earned a bachelor's in accounting from St. Norbert College and a master's of business administration from Northwestern University's Kellogg Graduate School of Management. Lenz also is a certified public accountant.

About Kaplan Higher Education
Kaplan Higher Education serves more than 100,000 students through 70-plus campus-based schools and online operations across the United States. Its online institutions include Kaplan University, Concord Law School of Kaplan University and Kaplan Virtual Education. Kaplan Higher Education schools offer a spectrum of academic opportunities, from high school diplomas to graduate and professional degrees, including a juris doctor degree. Kaplan Higher Education is part of Kaplan, Inc., a subsidiary of The Washington Post Company (NYSE: WPO).