Anna Ortiz named new College of Education dean

Anna Ortiz, Ph.D., has been named dean of the College of Education, after serving as interim dean for the past 10 months. 

Ortiz’s appointment, announced by Karyn Scissum Gunn, provost and senior vice president for academic affairs, is set to begin June 1. 

 “Dr. Ortiz’s institutional commitment to equity and visionary leadership are sure to benefit the College of Education and our campus,” Scissum Gunn said. “I am confident she will continue to move the college forward during this exciting new chapter.” 

As interim dean, Ortiz mobilized faculty and staff at The Beach with a proven record of leadership. For more than 30 years, she has been a student development educator in the classroom as a professor and as a practitioner in the field. 

In 2021 she was named CSULB Outstanding Professor. 

“I look forward to helping the College and all of our students, staff and faculty achieve their education dreams,” Ortiz said.

At Cal State Long Beach, she has served as a faculty member of the Student Development in Higher Education and Educational Doctorate programs and led the Educational Doctorate for 10 years. She was instrumental in the creation of the Educational Leadership Department, serving as department chair for two terms. 

Ortiz has shown a dedication to promoting equity, serving as co-chair of the President’s Equity and Change Commission, as faculty chair and member of CSULB Latinx Faculty & Staff Association, a faculty equity advocate for the College of Education, and a co-lead of El Concilio for Latinx Success. 

The longtime educator’s professional endeavors also extend beyond The Beach. She has held leadership positions within the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators, the American College Personnel Association, the Association for the Study of Higher Education, the American Educational Research Association, and served as the founding director of the NASPA Faculty Division. 

Ortiz received her doctorate in higher education and organizational change from UCLA, her master’s from The Ohio State University, and undergraduate degree from UC Davis. 

Her research interests center around college student development, primarily in the areas of ethnic identity development, multicultural education, faculty development and professional issues in student affairs. Ortiz also has authored a range of publications including books, articles and book chapters.