HelioCampus Blog

CEO, HelioCampus

Darren Catalano is a leading authority on Higher Education Financial Sustainability and Institutional Performance Management. As the CEO of HelioCampus, he partners with executive leadership to build resilient business models that protect their institution's academic mission through data-driven clarity.

Professional Background & Expertise

Darren brings a practitioner's lens to higher education's financial and operational pressures, having served as the Vice President of Analytics within the University System of Maryland. He holds a background in Economics from the University of Virginia.

His work focuses on helping Presidents, Provosts, and CFOs move past fragmented insights toward an evidence-based approach to institutional health. He views data not as an administrative hurdle, but as the essential shared foundation that allows leaders to lead with clarity and purpose during times of significant transformation. By championing transparency and trusted data, Darren empowers leaders to navigate shifting enrollment trends and the complexities of Enterprise AI.

Ask Darren About

Darren advocates for the strategic use of data to secure the long-term viability of higher education. He provides executive-level insights on:

• Institutional Performance Management: How to move from instinct-based decision-making to evidence-based leadership.
• Strategic Financial Sustainability: Methods for rationalizing cost structures to protect the core academic mission.
• Enterprise Analytics & AI Governance: Establishing the semantic foundations and governance required for trusted institutional intelligence.
• Academic Portfolio Strategy: Evaluating the economic health of academic programs to balance resources with long-term institutional commitments.