UCLA CFO Out After Claiming Administrators Mishandled Money

The chief financial officer at the University of California, Los Angeles, is out of his job, days after accusing administrators of financial mismanagement in an interview with UCLA’s student newspaper.

In an interview with The Daily Bruin published Feb. 13, Stephen Agostini, who had been UCLA’s CFO since 2024, attributed a $425 million annual deficit to that mismanagement. He then pointed to a university plan to modernize its finances that has cost over $213 million as one example of financial mismanagement, calling the initiative “a terrific waste of resources.” He also claimed that unaudited financial reports that had been posted to the university’s website since 2002 contained inaccuracies.

UCLA chancellor Julio Frenk announced in an email to campus Tuesday that Agostini was no longer CFO, effective immediately, and that Reem Hanna-Harwell, senior associate dean for finance and administration in the UCLA College, would step in as interim CFO. The announcement did not state whether Agostini’s employment had been terminated or if he resigned, nor did it say whether his departure was related to the Bruin article. 

A statement from Mary Osako, the university’s vice chancellor for strategic communications, denied Agostini’s claims of financial mismanagement and claimed the $425 million figure is not legitimate. 

“The figure includes funds that are not committed for expenditure, including items that have been proposed or discussed but not approved. As such, it does not represent the university’s projected operating deficit,” she wrote.  

“Chancellor Frenk is confident in the integrity of UCLA’s leadership, past and present, and their financial oversight and decision-making processes,” the statement continued. “Statements suggesting otherwise are unfounded and do not reflect his or UCLA’s position.”