MEDIA CONTACT: Steve Esack, 717-418-7526, stesack@pa.gov
HARRISBURG, PA – The Pennsylvania Public School Employees' Retirement System (PSERS) announced today that Brian Lyman has been named as its Chief Financial Officer. This appointment comes after an extensive nationwide search that took place over several recent months.
Lyman, a certified public accountant with 25 years of experience in government and corporate accounting, finance, and auditing, will oversee the PSERS Office of Financial Management (OFM) commencing on February 26. He will replace Andy Fiscus, who has served as interim CFO following a key staff retirement. Fiscus will return to his previous position as Director of Investment Accounting at PSERS, as planned.
As CFO, Lyman will be responsible for the OFM, which has a complement of 45 employees and interfaces with the Governor's Office of the Budget, various state agencies, public school employers, and independent actuarial and auditing consultants. The office is responsible for budgeting, accounting, employer and member payroll collections, and annuitant benefit payment operations associated with the System's defined benefit and contribution plans and two post-employment healthcare plans totaling $70.7 billion in net assets.
Lyman had been the Chief Accounting Officer of the Pennsylvania Office of the Budget, Comptroller Operations, since April 2019. In that role, he managed a $60 million budget and led a staff of around 400 accountants, auditors, financial analysts, payroll professionals, and contract managers. Prior, he was the Director of Comptroller Operations' Bureau of Audits.
PSERS Executive Director Terri Sanchez said, "Brian comes to PSERS at an exciting time for the fund, as we realign our organization to deliver superb customer service to our members while enhancing public accountability and transparency along the way. Brian's experience, commitment to public service, and familiarity with state government make him a perfect fit for this role as we continue executing our recently unveiled strategic plan."
Lyman graduated from the University of Delaware with a bachelor's degree in accounting in 1999. His prior employment includes being a Senior Manager at the firms of KPMG and Clifton Gunderson and as a Deputy State Auditor in Delaware. He resides in Chester County with his wife and four children.
About the Pennsylvania Public School Employees' Retirement System
PSERS, founded in 1917, began operations in 1919 to oversee a statewide defined benefit pension plan for public school employees. PSERS' role expanded upon the passage of Act 5 of 2017 to include oversight of two new benefit options consisting of defined benefit and defined contribution (DC) components and a stand-alone DC plan. As of Sept. 30, 2023, PSERS had total net assets of $70.7 billion and a membership of about 251,000 active, 250,000 retired school employees and 27,000 vested inactive members.