Dear Otter community,

As the fourth president of California State University Monterey Bay, I am honored to be leading this great institution that serves a diverse student body, enhances the lives of young people on the central coast, and enriches the community around us. As I’ve gotten to know more about the community and the history of this campus, I see a bright and optimistic future for the university and the region.

I have spent much of my first year getting to know all of you. I have met with students, faculty, staff, community members, donors and other partners who support our university. Through these many conversations, you have shown me the places where we excel and the spots where we have further potential.

At CSUMB, we have seven areas of opportunity on which to focus our energy so that we can increase access to higher education, support the economy and quality of life in our region and continue to celebrate diversity while we strive toward equity.

I learned from my grandmother and my mother that education is the pathway that offers choices and I truly believe it is the way forward for our current and future students.

Like my grandmother used to say, “lo unico que puedo darles para un buen futuro es una buena educacion!”  The only way to have a good future is to get a good education. So that is our mission at California State University Monterey Bay –  to ensure that our students have a strong future, through education.

In my first year, I have created task forces, working groups and new committees that will create action plans to move each of our seven opportunities forward, and I have created goals for us. I will share updates as we continue our work and plans for my second year at CSUMB via email and on my website.

Vanya Quiñones, PhD
President
California State University, Monterey Bay