Arizona Board of Regents approves Cruz as new NAU president
March 10, 2021
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PHOENIX (AP) The Arizona Board of Regents voted Wednesday to approve the appointment of Dr. José Luis Cruz as Northern Arizona University’s new president.
Cruz, who had been the executive vice chancellor and university provost of The City University of New York, accepted the position at NAU on Feb. 18.
He’s already visited the Flagstaff campus and cited plans to develop programs and build initiatives that improve the university’s access, success and community engagement.
Cruz said he decided to leave his position in New York to become NAU’s 17th president because he wanted to return to a more community-integrated university.
The topic today is higher education in Arizona, with our focus on Yuma and La Paz Counties.
Last week the Arizona Board of Regents announced the Arizona Innovation Alliance. It is a partnership of the state’s three public universities - Arizona State University, Northern Arizona University and the University of Arizona - to enhance public higher education across the state.
The first place the alliance will focus on to improve the retention, graduation and academic performance of traditionally underserved students is Yuma. They will be working with Arizona Western College to figure out exactly how to do it.
At the same time, this week we have news of efforts by the Arizona Legislature to expand four-year degree opportunities by allowing state community colleges to offer them. An effort that is now in the State Senate.
House passes bill for 4-year community college degrees
Arizona’s community colleges may have the best chance ever of finally being able to offer four-year degrees to their students.
With only three dissenting votes, the state House voted Monday to permit community colleges to offer baccalaureate degrees to students. The measure now goes to the Senate.
If ultimately successful, the move would cap years of efforts by advocates to find alternatives to what some consider to be both expensive and inconvenient programs for residents to get four-year degrees at one of the state’s three universities. Similar measures have faltered for at least the last quarter century amid stiff opposition from members of the Arizona Board of Regents who have argued there is no need.