Laura T. Ponder

Laura T. Ponder, CPA, MBA, is the Chief Financial Officer at Southwestern Law School. As CFO, she provides strategic leadership for Southwestern’s operating budget, financial and capital resources, and finance operations. She is currently responsible for oversight over the Accounting and Financial Aid offices and is the primary financial liaison for the Law School’s Audit & Compliance Committee, Finance Committee, and Retirement Committee. With a strong and diverse background in higher education finance and public accounting, Laura Ponder has developed expertise in prospective strategy, financial reporting, and financial systems. Prior to joining Southwestern, she held financial leadership positions as the Controller of Pepperdine University and the Director of Finance at the University of Southern California. She received an MBA with a Finance concentration from Pepperdine and a BA in Economics with an emphasis in Accounting from the University of California Santa Barbara. Ponder obtained her California CPA license during her time as an auditor at PricewaterhouseCoopers.