With youthful energy, a ‘Wonderful Life’

One man can make a difference.
For Lucas J. Lussier, chief financial officer and business manager at The Metropolitan Regional Career and Technical Center, or The Met, the inspiration to do so comes from the annals of classic American cinema.
One of his favorite films is “It’s a Wonderful Life.”
The film tells the story of George Bailey, a hard-working man who believes he is laboring in obscurity until he is able to see what life would have been like if he never existed.
“He sees the impact he has made on the town and its people,” Lussier said, promoting the concept that every person can make a difference. “Business leaders can make a difference and improve their institution or industry by working hard, devoting the time necessary to the task at hand, following through with their goals or objectives and standing up for what they believe in.” However, this does not come without some personal sacrifice, he said.
For Lussier, this sacrifice can be working at home until the wee hours or squeezing as much productivity as possible into an eight-hour day at the office. Apparently, he is the right man for the job, so much so that he is this year’s Rising Star in the CFO Awards program. At 31, he would appear to be young for such an important position – especially when he is mistaken for one of the students at the school.
Lussier takes it in stride.
“People’s perception of my age, which ranges between 16 and 26, sometimes makes things difficult. I often hear, ‘You look so young,’ or ‘I thought you were a student,’ ” he said.
“I always smile and take the comments as compliments. Every now and then I will respond, ‘I just received my driver’s license yesterday, and good thing because I was wondering how I was going to make this meeting!’ ”
Speaking of which, Lussier handles meetings and the other duties that come his way with a competence worthy of applause. Lussier was hired by The Met while the R.I. Department of Education was in the process of developing and implementing the Uniform Chart of Accounts – a new financial reporting system – and a new state education-funding formula.
“Although greatly beneficial for Rhode Island, both reforms provided significant challenges for The Met as far as increased workload and reporting requirements and a more than 32 percent reduction in education aid,” said Dennis Littky, co-founder, co-director and superintendent at The Met.
How Lussier handled this challenge is what inspired Littky to nominate him for the CFO Awards program.
The task of managing a 32 percent reduction in revenue is the most difficult challenge yet, Lussier said. “To overcome this, I have made cost-cutting suggestions to the administration and our board that will have no impact on a child’s education, such as savings that The Met would incur from implementing a performance contracting project,” he said. However, the decisions are not easy ones. Cuts have been and will be made that impact the operation, students and staff, Lussier said.
The end result?
The Met is operating with a balanced budget for fiscal years 2012 and 2013 and is working toward balancing the budget for fiscal years 2014, 2015 and 2016.
Lussier balances his time with work, family and community with as much discipline as he balances budgets. Coaching in the Warwick National Little League is a fine outlet for the stress of managing the books of a multimillion dollar business, he said.
“Coaching children reminds me of the innocence of youth and how playing a sport is not about whether you win or lose, it is about having fun, making friends, enjoying the outdoors, and looking forward to the snack at the end of the game,” Lussier said. During this time, he said, children are paying attention to the task at hand, not thinking about homework or what chores they need to take care of when the game is done. “They are solely focused on playing.”
That sense of play is contagious, even if you’re a CFO managing a $14.6 million operating budget. “When I am out on the field with them, I too forget about work and the worries of life,” Lussier said.
Back in the office, though, it’s all business.
As CFO, Lussier is responsible for managing The Met’s budget within the parameters designated by RIDE and the state Budget Office. Of course there’s more, but there is also a difference between being a CFO at a school and being a CFO at a traditional business.
“The CFO is responsible for managing the financial risks of an institution and financial planning and reporting, whether the institution is a locksmith’s shop or The Met,” Lussier said. “The only difference is that one is skilled at unlocking your door when you have misplaced your keys where the other is skilled at unlocking a student’s passion for learning.”
And even though his first love is business, it dovetails nicely with his passion for education. As love often does, it happened by accident.
He majored in accounting at the University of Rhode Island and took classes in management, marketing, economics and business law. It wasn’t until he began working as a student in the vice president’s office at URI that he saw the business end of operating an institution of higher education.
“I found accomplishment in working to better the institution, that would in turn provide a better environment for a student to learn,” Lussier said. “I feel that I am continuing this work at The Met.” •