A familiar name in Detroit and Michigan political circles is joining Wayne State University’s senior leadership team. Wayne State President M. Roy Wilson has announced that effective upon the completion of the fiscal year 2022 budget for the State of Michigan, David Massaron will assume the duties of chief business officer and CFO/senior vice president for finance and business operations and treasurer.

Massaron, who currently serves as the State of Michigan’s budget director, will be responsible for the university’s overall financial and business affairs, including budget preparation of the general and auxiliary funds, business services, human resources, and facilities management. In his capacity, Massaron will work closely with the university’s Board of Governors, senior leadership and faculty, as well as key members of the local and state business and political communities. The national search firm Anthem Executive assisted in identifying Massaron as a top candidate for the position. 

He replaces Rebecca Cooke, who came out of retirement to serve in the position on an interim basis while the university held a national search.

Before joining the state, Massaron served as the chief financial officer for the City of Detroit, where he supervised all of the city’s financial and budget activities. Prior to his CFO assignment, he served as the city’s chief operating officer and senior counsel to Mayor Mike Duggan. In that role, he was responsible for day-to-day operations of the city, including ensuring that annual budgets reflected the mayor’s priorities.  

His accomplishments with the city include achieving five years of balanced budgets post-bankruptcy, implementing a $1.8 billion capital investment strategy to improve city infrastructure and facilities, and developing the crisis management strategy to deploy federal funds and reduce city expenses during the COVID-19 pandemic to ensure continued solvency for the city.

“We held a national search for this important position and found our ideal candidate right here in Detroit,” said Wilson. “Dave is a proven leader and problem-solver, with a demonstrated ability to find creative solutions and build consensus. He is a great fit for us, and we’re delighted he is joining Wayne State.”

Massaron is a graduate of James Madison College at Michigan State University and the William and Mary School of Law.

“I want to thank Governor Whitmer for allowing me to serve as state budget director and participate in the enormous progress we made in a short time,” said Massaron. “I look forward to working with the legislature to achieve similar things on the rest of the budget. I feel that my career and experiences have equipped me well for this position, and I’m excited to join Wayne State and help serve its extraordinary mission. As a native and current Detroiter with strong connections to the university, I feel like this is coming home, and I can’t wait to get started.”