Dear Toro Community,
As we approach the first day of classes for the Fall Semester, I hope you feel the same excitement that I do about this coming year. We have made great progress as a university in many areas, and I look forward to building on that momentum.
In everything that happens, I continue to center one overarching goal of my interim presidency, which is to prepare CSUDH for its next president. To assist me in this effort, I have created a new temporary position in the Office of the President that will span the last eleven months of the 2026-27 Academic Year: Special Assistant to the President for Organizational Effectiveness. The Special Assistant will serve as my strategic partner, working with the Cabinet, academic and administrative leadership, and shared governance bodies to advance institutional priorities.
I carefully considered the importance of this role and the wealth of talented leaders within our community, and have chosen Dr. Corinne Martinez to fill this vital role. Dr. Martinez joined CSUDH in 2022 and currently serves as Associate Dean for the College of Education. She is an academic leader with over 25 years of administrative and faculty experience in higher education, with demonstrated expertise in strategic institutional leadership and a distinguished record directing multi-campus initiatives across the CSU system. Her experience, knowledge, and leadership skills align perfectly with this newly created role.
As Special Assistant to the President for Organizational Effectiveness, Dr. Martinez will work to align, track, and coordinate efforts by the Cabinet, divisions, and teams to advance cabinet commitments and other strategic initiatives, while strengthening communication and alignment on our key priorities across the university. In addition, her role as a liaison between the President’s Office and the Academic Senate, and a strong partnership with Chief of Staff Susan Sanders, will ensure that I am well-supported in advancing the university’s strategic initiatives, while respecting the operational authority of individual divisions.
Please join me in thanking Dr. Martinez for committing to this role and for stepping up at a moment when the university needs her skills and deep institutional knowledge. As we all work together to ensure the future of CSUDH, her work will be an essential component of our success in this endeavor.
Sincerely,
Mary Ann Villarreal, Ph.D.
Interim President
