Waded Cruzado

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Waded Cruzado
Waded-Cruzado.jpg
Cruzado in 2012
12th President of Montana State University
Assumed office
2010

Waded Cruzado (born January 16, 1960) [1] is a Puerto Rican professor of Spanish language and Spanish literature. She served as Interim President of New Mexico State University from 2008 to 2009, and since 2010 has served as the 12th President of Montana State University in Bozeman, Montana.

Contents

Early life

Waded Cruzado was born in 1960 in Mayaguez, Puerto Rico, to parents Morgan and Daisy. [2] [3] The oldest of four children, [4] she had a brother and two sisters. [3] She was raised in Mayaguez [4] by her stepfather, Roberto, and her mother. [3] Her grandparents were farmers, [5] but her stepfather worked for a coffee as a trader for a company and her mother was a homemaker. [4] [5] [6]

Education

When she was 10 years old, [7] Cruzado's parents enrolled her in an all-girl parochial school in Mayaguez. [4] Cruzado was the first person in her family to attend college, as she would later go on to enrolled at the University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez. She graduated in 1982 magna cum laude with a bachelor's degree in comparative literature. [4]

She immediately enrolled at the University of Texas at Arlington. She was the first person in her family to leave Puerto Rico and move to the mainland United States. [8] She earned her master's degree in Spanish language and literature in 1984. [4] She worked as a graduate teaching assistant in the school's Department of Foreign Languages and Linguistics from 1983 to 1986, and was appointed an Instructor there. [9]

Cruzado next entered the doctoral program in the humanities from the University of Texas at Arlington. She received her Ph.D. in the humanities in 1990. [10] While earning her doctorate, Cruzado was appointed an instructor in Spanish language at the Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico in 1989.

Academic career

Cruzado was appointed assistant professor in the Department of Humanities at the University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez (UPRM) in 1990, and in 1999, became a full professor. [9] Former students later described her as a good teacher, and one called her "charming, witty, outgoing and eloquent." [2]

In 1993, just prior to her promotion to associate professor, Cruzado was named assistant dean for student affairs in the UPRM College of Arts and Sciences, a position she held until 1995. [9] In 1997, she was elected and served a single term as the faculty representative on the UPRM Administrative Board. A year later, Cruzado was appointed the associate dean for academic affairs in the UPRM College of Arts and Sciences, but after serving only a few months she was appointed as dean. [9] Cruzado left UPRM in 2003 to become dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at New Mexico State University (NMSU), [9] where her fundraising secured donations to endow three professorships. [11]

On September 1, 2007, Cruzado was named executive vice president and provost of NMSU. [10] In 2008, the NMSU Board of Regents appointed Cruzado the interim president. [12] She was the first woman and the second Hispanic president of the school. [12]

Presidency of Montana State University

Montana State University President Geoffrey Gamble announced his retirement on March 22, 2009. [13] After a nationwide search, Cruzado was one of three finalists. Cruzado was offered the presidency of MSU on October 14, 2009. She accepted the following day. [14] She became the 12th President of Montana State University, and her first day in office was January 4, 2010. Her official inauguration was held September 10, 2010. [2]

In May 2013, Cruzado's salary was reported to be $289,466 a year. With other compensation and benefits, her total remuneration was $335,173 a year. [15] According to the Chronicle of Higher Education , her salary was ranked 167th out of 212 public college presidents surveyed. [16]

One of Cruzado's earliest announced goals was to more closely integrate the units of the MSU System of campuses in Billings, Havre, and Great Falls. Cruzado said she would place a much greater emphasis on integrating the two-year schools into MSU, a concept she called "one university." [1]

In 2010, Cruzado began a push to create a full two-year community college at MSU. [17] That resulted in the College of Technology–Great Falls programs, renamed Gallatin College MSU, moving to campus in August of that year and initially offering programs in aviation, design drafting, interior design, and welding. [18]

In September 2012, MSU adopted a strategic plan at Cruzado's behest titled "Mountains and Minds, Learners and Leaders." [19] Its top goals increasing enrollment, improving graduate rates, reducing student attrition, increasing the number of faculty members doing research, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, promoting student and faculty community service, increasing online course offerings and raising pay. [20]

On January 15, 2013, approximately 100 MSU faculty met in an off-campus meeting and issued a press release that identified complaints pertaining to concerns that the rapid student enrollment meant a degeneration of quality education at MSU, as there would be an apparent lack in faculty, staff, and facilities. [21] On January 17, 2013, Cruzado met face-to-face with three faculty members who facilitated the off-campus meeting [21] Taking the concerns "very seriously" [21]

Cruzado announced her intent to retire through a campus-wide email on August 12, 2024, to be effective June 30, 2025.

Other roles

In November 2012, President Barack Obama appointed Cruzado to the Board for International Food and Agricultural Development (BIFAD), a seven-member council that advises the United States Agency for International Development on agriculture, nutrition, and rural development issues related to global food insecurity. [22] Cruzado served on the board until 2020, and while she was a member, she chaired the selection committee for the BIFAD Award for Scientific Excellence in a Feed the Future Innovation Lab and engaged with higher education partners in West Africa. [23] In 2015, Cruzado hosted the board at Montana State University and brought tribal college leaders into dialogue with BIFAD about their role in addressing poverty, nutrition, and food security. [24]

In the aftermath of the Boston Marathon bombing, the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth appointed Cruzado chair of a three-person task force on the recruitment and support of international students, and emergency planning. Also serving on the task force were Susan Herbst, president of the University of Connecticut, and James Bueermann, president of the Police Foundation. The task force was asked to complete its work by August 15, 2013. [25]

Honors

Cruzado was named the 2011 Michael P. Malone Educator of the Year by the Montana Ambassadors for demonstrating outstanding accomplishment, excellence and leadership in the field of education. [26] She was also recognized as a Paul Harris Fellow by Rotary International and, in November 2012, the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities awarded her the Seaman A. Knapp Memorial Lectureship, in honor of the founder of the Cooperative Extension Service. [27]

Published works

Dr. Cruzado has published a number of professional articles and reports. Among these are:

Personal life

Cruzado was married to Rodolfo Mazo, but the marriage ended in divorce. The couple had two children. [2]

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References

  1. 1 2 Schontzler, Gail. "Cruzado Sees Great Things for MSU." Bozeman Daily Chronicle. January 16, 2010. Accessed 2013-08-26.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Schontzler, Gail. "Cruzado Vows to Build a Better, Stronger MSU." Bozeman Daily Chronicle. September 11, 2010.
  3. 1 2 3 Cruzado, Waded. "Empowering People, Transforming the World: Today's Land-Grant University." Inaugural Address. Montana State University. Bozeman, Montana. September 10, 2010. Accessed 2013-08-23.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Ellig, Tracy. "Waded Cruzado's Early Life Experiences Inspired Her Career and Philosophies." Mountains and Minds. Spring 2010. Archived 2011-06-08 at the Wayback Machine Accessed 2013-08-23.
  5. 1 2 Cruzado, Waded. "'Who Needs Extension, Anyway?': The Relevance and Values for Our Next 100 Years of Engagement." Seaman A. Knapp Lecture. Annual Meeting. Association of Public and Land-grant Universities. November 11, 2012, p. 1. Accessed 2013-08-23.
  6. ↑ Kennedy, Matthew. "New Museum of the Rockies Exhibit Tells Coffee's Story." MSU Exponent. March 21, 2013.
  7. ↑ Colnar, Rebecca. "Meet MSU President Waded Cruzado." Montana Farm Bureau Spokesman. Fall 2011, p. 18.
  8. ↑ Holston, Mark. "Latina University Presidents: Trailblazers in Education." Latina Style. 18:5 (October 2012), p. 26.
  9. 1 2 3 4 5 Who's Who in the West, 41st ed., 2013.
  10. 1 2 "NMSU Names New Provost." Associated Press. August 16, 2007.
  11. ↑ Benanti, Mary A. "Cruzado-Salas Named Executive Vice President and Provost." Press release. New Mexico State University. August 15, 2007. Accessed 2013-08-23.
  12. 1 2 "NMSU Names Waded Cruzado as Interim President." Albuquerue Business Journal. July 16, 2008. Accessed 2013-08-23.
  13. ↑ Schontzler, Gail. "Gamble to Retire as MSU President." Bozeman Daily Chronicle. March 23, 2009. Accessed 2013-08-10.
  14. ↑ "Cruzado Accepts Job as Montana State University President." Associated Press. October 16, 2009.
  15. ↑ Kidston, Martin. "Report: UM, MSU Presidents' Compensation in Line With Region." Billings Gazette. May 16, 2013. Accessed 2013-08-23.
  16. ↑ Schontzler, Gail. "MSU, UM Struggle to Compete When Salaries Rank Near Bottom Nationally." Bozeman Daily Chronicle. June 16, 2013.
  17. ↑ Schontzler, Gail. "Cruzado to try again for a Bozeman college of technology." Bozeman Daily Chronicle. April 1, 2010.
  18. ↑ Boyce, Dan. "New College of Technology Sets Up in Bozeman." KTVQ.com. August 11, 2010. Accessed 2013-08-26.
  19. ↑ Schontzler, Gail. "MSU Off to a Wonderful Start, Cruzado Says." Bozeman Daily Chronicle. September 26, 2012.
  20. ↑ Schontzler, Gail. "MSU Plan Calls for 16,000 Students By 2019." Bozeman Daily Chronicle. September 6, 2012.
  21. 1 2 3 Schontzler, Gail. "Cruzado Answers Concerns From MSU Faculty Group." Bozeman Daily Chronicle. January 19, 2013.
  22. ↑ Schontzler, Gail. "Obama Names Cruzado to Board on World Food, Hunger." Bozeman Daily Chronicle. November 28, 2012.
  23. ↑ "Dr. Waded Cruzado, President of Montana State University - Office of the President | Montana State University". www.montana.edu. Retrieved 2020-09-21.
  24. ↑ Schmidt, Carol (2015-04-09). "To solve global problems, 'attract the brightest students to agriculture,' MSU professor tells international board". Montana State University. Retrieved 2020-09-21.
  25. ↑ Graham, Jordan. "UMass Dartmouth Names Post-Bombing Review Task Force." Boston Herald. May 20, 2013. Accessed 2013-08-23.
  26. ↑ "MSU President Honored by Montana Ambassadors as Educator of the Year". MSU News. 24 March 2012. Archived from the original on 1 June 2013. Retrieved 27 September 2012.
  27. ↑ "President of Montana State University Will Give Seaman A. Knapp Memorial Lecture in Honor of Extension Service Founder". National Institute of Food and Agriculture. 27 August 2012. Retrieved 23 July 2013.

Bibliography

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