| Title: | President |
| Phone: | (916) 278-7737 |
Dr. Alexander Gonzalez has served more than three decades as a
professor and education leader, including the last eight years as
president of California State University, Sacramento.
As the first person in his family to graduate from college, Dr.
Gonzalez has devoted his career to ensuring greater opportunities
for students. He grew up in East Los Angeles with six
siblings, graduating from high school at a time when students did
not have the same options for higher education that they have
today.
Dr. Gonzalez enlisted in the U.S. Air Force at age 17, served four
years and then used the G.I. Bill to graduate from Pomona College
in Claremont, Calif. He later earned a master's in psychology
and doctorate from the University of California, Santa Cruz, before
serving as a postdoctoral research fellow at Stanford
University.
His experience includes six years as president of California State
University, San Marcos, and 18 years as a faculty member and
provost at Fresno State. At Sacramento State, Dr. Gonzalez
implemented his Destination 2010 initiative to transform the campus
into a premier metropolitan university.
Following his belief that universities and communities must work
together to improve lives and opportunities, Dr. Gonzalez serves on
the Pomona College Board of Trustees and is a board member of
Valley Vision. He also serves on the board of directors of the
Crocker Art Museum and as a Director of the National Endowment for
Financial Education (NEFE). Dr. Gonzalez was appointed by then-Gov.
Arnold Schwarzenegger to serve as a Commissioner on the California
Student Aid Commission.
His past service includes six years as a commissioner for the
Western Association of Schools and Colleges, the accrediting agency
for higher education institutions in California and Hawaii, and
serving as chair of the Governing Board of the Hispanic Association
of Colleges and Universities. He also served on the
President’s Advisory Commission on Educational Excellence for
Hispanic Americans and the Sutter Health Board of Directors.