Megan Pierson ’82 will serve as sole chief of staff to President Marc Tessier-Lavigne beginning Feb. 1.

Pierson, who has served as senior associate provost and senior university counsel at Stanford since 2006, will advise the president on initiatives and executive duties and meet with stakeholders. Serving along with Roberta Katz, Pierson has been one of two interim chiefs of staff for Tessier-Lavigne since Sept. 1.

“Megan has already provided me with a deep perspective on Stanford’s operations,” said Tessier-Lavigne to the Stanford News Report. “With Megan’s appointment, we are consolidating our team and ready to move forward on a host of university initiatives, including our long-range planning efforts.”

In her current positions, Pierson has worked on both academic and administrative matters at Stanford. She assisted the provost and headed the team that examined university policies on faculty appointments and various other faculty and academic affairs. She took part in providing legal and strategic counsel for the University’s online education initiative and for international teaching, research and service activities.

“I am immensely grateful for the opportunities I have had to work with dedicated staff, faculty and leaders,” Pierson said to the Stanford News Report. “I am excited about the opportunity to support Marc, the new leadership team and the broader university community in service to the mission and values of Stanford.”

Pierson received a bachelor’s degree (with distinction) from Stanford and a J.D. from the University of Southern California. Before her current positions at Stanford, she served as a partner at Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP and “advised clients on various legal issues, including operational concerns, strategic initiatives and mergers and acquisitions, including the $70 billion Verizon Wireless joint venture,” according to Stanford News Report.

Contact Ariel Liu at aliu15 ‘at’ stanford.edu.