Tomás D. Morales, PhD

Tomás D. Morales, PhD, was selected as the president of California State University, San Bernardino in May 2012. He is the university’s fourth president since it opened in 1965. Previously, Morales was president of the College of Staten Island, The City University of New York (CUNY), since 2007.

From 2001 to 2007, Morales served in various capacities at California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, including Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, Vice President for Student Affairs, and professor of education. Prior to joining Pomona, Morales was Vice President for Student Affairs and Dean of Students at The City College of New York/CUNY from 1994 to 2001. He provided strategic leadership, restructured the Student Services Corporation, and implemented a new student-centered model for the division of Student Affairs. From 1992 to 1994, Morales was Assistant Dean of the School of Education at the State University of New York (SUNY), New Paltz.

He holds a B.A. in history from SUNY, New Paltz, and earned his M.S. and Ph.D. in educational administration and policy studies from SUNY, Albany. Having served as an educator and administrative leader in higher education for 41 years, he is one of the few higher education administrators in the United States who has held senior administrative positions at the three largest public university systems in the nation: The California State University, The State University of New York, and The City University of New York.

Morales is actively involved with several national organizations. He currently serves as chair of the Governing Board of the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities and on the Executive Committee of the Coalition of Urban and Metropolitan Universities. In addition, he previously served as chair and board member of the American Association of State Colleges and Universities, as well as co-chair of AASCU’s National Task Force on College Readiness which released the report, “Serving America’s Future: Increasing College Readiness,” a comprehensive examination that advocates approaches for public institutions to take.

He also previously served on the board of directors of the American Council on Education, the American Council on Education’s Commission on Racial and Ethnic Equity, and the National Information and Communication Technology Literacy Policy Council.

In May 2012, he was awarded an honorary doctorate of humane letters from his alma mater SUNY, New Paltz, where he was the featured commencement speaker. In recognition for his service to education and his passion for the sport, the baseball field at the College of Staten Island was named in his honor as the Tomás D. Morales Baseball Field.

His lifelong dedication to improving the access and quality of public higher education has been recognized with numerous awards, including the Distinguished Leader in Education award from Education Update; the Lifetime Achievement Award in Education from the New York League of Puerto Rican Women, Inc.; Effective Leadership Golden Age Award from the Latino Center on Aging; Latino Trendsetter Award at the United Nations; the IMAGEN Certificate Award from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services; the Professional Achievement Award from Boricua College; the Hispanic Leadership Award from the Boy Scouts of America; the Outstanding Leadership in the Service of Youth Award by the National Honor Society at Susan E. Wagner High School; and the Louis R. Miller Award from the Staten Island Chamber of Commerce and Staten Island Advance.

Tomás and his wife Evy have been married for over 40 years. They have three grown children (sons Thomas and Omar Morales, daughter Amanda Jimenez) and six grandchildren.