ACE awarded Waded Cruzado, president of Montana State University (MSU), with the 2024 ACE Council of Fellows/Fidelity Investments Mentor Award yesterday at the
2024 Council of Fellows Weekend.
The Council of Fellows/Fidelity Investments Mentor Award is given annually to acknowledge the substantial role of mentors in the success of ACE Fellows Program participants. Cruzado has mentored four Fellows and nominated two Fellows.
Since its inception in 1965, the
ACE Fellows Program has strengthened institutions and leadership in American postsecondary education by identifying and preparing more than 2,500 faculty and administrators for senior positions in higher education leadership. More than 80 percent of Fellows have gone on to serve as chief executive officers of colleges or universities, provosts, vice presidents, and deans.
2024 Council of Fellows Mentor Award recipient Waded Cruzado (center) with two of her Fellows, Maureen McCarthy (left) and Stephanie Santorico (right).
“President Cruzado’s former mentees have praised her as a compassionate mentor and inspirational leader deeply devoted to higher education,” said Juanita Banks, director, ACE Fellows Program. “Her steadfast support for the Fellows Program, stemming from her experience as a mentor and nominator, underscores her unwavering dedication to fostering the next generation of higher education leaders.”
Cruzado has mentored: Maureen A. McCarthy, dean, College of Sciences and Humanities, Ball State University; Eric J. López, professor, Department of Educator and Leadership Preparation, Texas A&M University-San Antonio; Paul Gore, former vice president of academic affairs and provost, Bellarmine University; and Stephanie A. Santorico, dean, College of Architecture and Planning, University of Colorado Denver. She has also nominated: Robert J. Marley, professor of engineering management and emeritus provost and executive vice chancellor, Missouri University of Science and Technology; and Nancy Cornwell, professor, College of Arts & Architecture, Montana State University.
“I was the first in my family to go to college. It transformed my life in ways that I still struggle to put into words,” Cruzado said. “And yet, there were so many things that I was unaware of—the hidden curriculum of college life. Mentoring others who wish to serve the noble purpose of educating the sons and daughters of our nation is the least I can do to repay those who opened the doors of education for me. It has been my pleasure to mentor these Fellows. Each one was a teacher and I learned from them as much as I gave. They are all remarkable people and I cherish the time we shared on this pursuit that is higher education.”
Since 2010, Cruzado has served as president of MSU, the state’s first land-grant institution. Cruzado, well known for her understanding of the land-grant university system, is a passionate champion of the land-grant university’s tripartite mission of education, research, and outreach to communities, as well as the critical role higher education plays in the development of people, the prosperity of the nation, and the vitality of democracy.
During her tenure, Cruzado has transformed the institution into one of the nation’s fastest-growing universities. University enrollment has increased by more than 40 percent under Cruzado’s leadership, and the university’s first-year retention rate recently hit a 30-year high. Additionally, graduation rates in 2023 set modern institutional records, spurred by initiatives Cruzado instituted to encourage students to enroll in more credits per semester to graduate on time with less debt. She also founded the MSU Hilleman Scholars Program, named for MSU alumnus and renowned vaccinologist Maurice Hilleman, to provide opportunities for Montana students to grow their leadership and academic potential. The university, which is home to 300 laboratories, 44 research centers, and seven agricultural research stations, recently marked 10 consecutive years of at least $100 million in research expenditures.
Throughout her career, Cruzado has found various ways to apply her leadership skills. In 2012, President Barack Obama appointed Cruzado to the Board for International Food and Agricultural Development, and she was reappointed in 2017. She has chaired the board of directors of the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities and HERS, and she has served on a variety of other boards. She has received the Hero Award from the Montana Chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Illness and the Michael P. Malone Educator of the Year award, among other awards.
Prior to leading MSU, Cruzado served at New Mexico State University in various leadership roles including interim president, executive vice president and provost, and dean of the College of Arts and Sciences. Cruzado, a Puerto Rico native, also previously served as dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez, Puerto Rico’s land-grant university.
“President Cruzado is not only an exceptional leader and advocate of higher education but is also an individual who truly cares about the success of the educators she mentors, as well as the students attending Montana State University,” said Sangeeta Moorjani, head of tax-exempt business and retirement solutions at Fidelity Investments. “It is leaders like Cruzado that will truly shape the future of higher education through their commitment to shaping the next generation of educators.”
Since 2008, Fidelity Investments has been a generous supporter of the ACE Fellows Program, empowering the Council of Fellows to provide support for the discretionary fund of the Mentor Award winner’s institution, as well as the Fellows Fund for the Future, which provides stipends to help cover costs of sponsoring a Fellow for qualified institutions.