California State University Names Mildred García as Next Chancellor
Credit: Photo Courtesy of California State University- Mildred García will be the 11th chancellor of the California State University system.
- García previously served as president of California State University, Fullerton and California State University, Dominguez Hills.
- She will take over the 23-campus system Oct 1.
The California State University announced that Mildred García will be appointed the 11th chancellor, and first Latina leader, of the nation’s largest four-year university system.
García currently serves as president of the American Association of State Colleges and Universities (AASCU) and previously served as president of two California State University (CSU) campuses: Fullerton and Dominguez Hills. She will succeed interim Chancellor Jolene Koester, who has served since May 2022.
Her tenure will begin Oct. 1.
“Dr. García is a highly skilled, dynamic, and principled leader who has championed student success — especially for those students from underrepresented communities — throughout her long and distinguished career in public higher education,” Wenda Fong, chair of the CSU Board of Trustees, said in a statement.
García served as president of CSU’s Dominguez Hills campus from 2007-2012, becoming the system’s first Latina president, before serving as president of Cal State Fullerton from 2012-2018.
“The California State University is a powerful engine of change and upward mobility for California and the nation, supporting hundreds of thousands of students in achieving their educational, career, and personal aspirations,” García said in a statement.
Before her tenure with the CSU system, García also served as CEO of Berkeley College and has worked at several other institutions of higher education including Arizona State University, Pennsylvania State University, and Columbia University.
A first-generation college student, García has an associate degree from New York City Community College, a bachelor’s in business education from Baruch College, and a master’s in business education from New York University.
She also holds a master’s and a doctorate in higher education administration from Teachers College, Columbia University.
The California State University system spans 23 campuses and has 457,992 students,
47.7% of those who identify as Hispanic/Latino, according to 2022 enrollment data.
“I am honored, humbled, and excited for this opportunity to serve the nation’s largest four-year university system and work alongside its dedicated leaders, faculty and staff, and its talented and diverse students to further student achievement, close equity gaps and continue to drive California’s economic prosperity,” she said.