Leadership

Chris Lynne has spent more than 20 years in higher education, championing career-focused education for nontraditional students. As the first in his immediate family to benefit from higher education, Chris has dedicated his career to expanding pathways for underserved and marginalized students to achieve career and social mobility.

Mr. Lynne has served as president of University of Phoenix since 2022, a position he was elevated to after joining the university in 2018 as CFO. Mr. Lynne has collaborated with the executive team of the university to advance its transformation, which has included broadening its focus beyond degrees to include innovative career mobility solutions for students, alumni and employers. During his tenure, the university has achieved pivotal improvements in student retention, graduation rates and satisfaction.

A seasoned executive in higher education, Mr. Lynne previously served in leadership roles at Northcentral University, where he led the university through a period of change and growth as the COO and CFO, at HotChalk as President and COO, and as owner of Transcend Education Group.

Mr. Lynne holds a B.S. in Accounting from Purdue University and an MBA from the Booth School of Business at the University of Chicago.

Blair Westblom, chief financial officer and treasurer, leads the finance and real estate and facilities functions. In her role, she partners with executive management and the Board of Trustees to drive value creation in support of the University’s strategic objectives. Her areas of responsibility include accounting, internal audit, financial planning and analysis, treasury, strategic sourcing, tax, financial systems, real state and facilities, and collections.

Ms. Westblom is a seasoned finance leader with over 21 years of experience in publicly traded and private companies across various industries including higher education, biotechnology, investment banking and REITs. She joined the University in 2010 as associate director of finance and was promoted multiple times, with significant expansion of responsibility. In January 2023, Ms. Westblom was appointed chief financial officer by the University Board of Trustees.  

Prior to joining the University, Ms. Westblom was senior group controller at Genentech, a subsidiary of Roche, the $259 billion global pharmaceuticals and diagnostics business, where she was responsible for fiscal management of the $3 billion biologic oncology business during a period of rapid growth and investment in multiple clinical trials, product launches and line extensions. She also served as financial analyst at Thomas Weisel Partners, which was subsequently acquired by Stifel Financial, where she conducted industry research and advised corporate clients on multiple transactions, including initial public offerings, private placements and mergers and acquisitions, from deal origination through to completion.

Ms. Westblom earned a Bachelor of Arts in Economics and a minor in Business Administration from Vanderbilt University. 

Srini Medi has served as senior vice president, general counsel and secretary of the University since June 2020.

Prior to joining the University, Mr. Medi served in a number of different legal roles at Bisk Education, Inc. including associate general counsel from January 2017 to September 2017, general counsel from October 2017 to January 2019 and as chief legal officer from February 2019 to June 2020.

Prior to that, Mr. Medi served as associate general counsel at Vantage Hospitality Group, Inc. n/k/a Red Lion Hotel Corporation from January 2016 to December 2017.

Prior to that, Mr. Medi worked for nearly eight years at Kaplan, Inc., a global provider of higher education and education related services, where he led their Commercial Transaction team and spent some time serving as the lead attorney Kaplan University. Mr. Medi began his legal career at various law firms working in the areas of corporate securities, corporate finance, technology, and real estate.

Mr. Medi holds a Bachelor of Business Administration in Accounting, a Master of Business Administration and a Juris Doctorate from the University of Houston.

Jeff Honaker was appointed Chief Accounting Officer of University of Phoenix in January 2023. Since joining in 2008, he has held leadership roles at the University and its parent organization, including Vice President, Corporate Controller from 2016 to 2022, as well as other senior accounting and finance positions between 2008 and 2014.

Mr. Honaker began his career in public accounting in the assurance practice at Ernst & Young, LLP. He graduated magna cum laude from the University of Southern California with a Bachelor of Science in Accounting and is a Certified Public Accountant in the state of Arizona.