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Dr. Waded Cruzado

Administration March 2022 PREMIUM
Creating Success Together

Back in 2009, Dr. Waded Cruzado was comfortably working as interim president of New Mexico State University when she received a call from a headhunter. He told her about an opening as president of Montana State University.

Cruzado responded with a “thank you very much, but I really like New Mexico.” After all, New Mexico was similar to her childhood home of Puerto Rico. Both places have a large Latino population. Also, Puerto Rico has been called “the Island of Enchantment” (“La Isla del Encanto”) and New Mexico, the “Land of Enchantment.”

When the headhunter kept calling, insisting she consider Montana State University (MSU), she remained uninterested. Cruzado had researched the fact that Montana’s Latino population was a mere two percent and concluded, “this is not a good fit for me.”

What finally changed her mind, though, was the headhunter’s explanation for the university’s interest in her: “What we see in you is that you are experienced with land grant universities,” he said. “You have a passion for underserved minorities, and you have lots of energy.”

It is no wonder then that when Dr. Waded Cruzado finally agreed to take the helm as president of Montana State University in 2010, she was “the perfect fit”. She came into her position telling the people of Montana: “this is your university and let’s make sure to fulfill that promise.”

A Latina pioneer’s unique approach to leadership

As the first Latina at Montana State University, she brought a plethora of experience and a strong understanding of land grant universities. “Congress passed very important legislation in 1862. It established one public university in every state and territory in the union,” explained Cruzado. “That was bold. It was for the purpose of educating the sons and daughters of the industrial classes and it was the first time that ‘daughters’ appeared in a congressional bill. Before, universities were reserved for men from wealthy families.”

Cruzado began her presidency with a unique approach to leadership: she asked for help. “The most powerful words a leader can say is ‘I need your help.’ It conveys, ‘I trust that you have what is needed to make this happen,’ ” she said. “What I’ve found is that when you ask for help, no one says ‘no.’ You start slowly but then those concentric circles gain momentum, and those circles expand.”

Cruzado’s approach to leadership paid off. At Montana State University, enrollment grew from 11,760 in 2010 to nearly 17,000 in 2018. It became the fastest-growing and largest university in the state, has attracted more students with higher GPAs and SATs, and has improved retention rates among first-year and second-year students. This land grant university has also increased research expenditures, philanthropic support, presidential scholarships, construction and renovation projects, communication, and community relations. (In addition, Cruzado herself was appointed by President Barack Obama to the Board for International Food and Agricultural Development in 2012).

Unleashing MSU’s potential

“When I first arrived, I noticed this was a strong university but that it had unspent potential,” explained Cruzado about her first days on the job. “I also learned that the domain of leaders is the future. We need to lift up our periscope and place students at the center of this conversation.”

One of Cruzado’s first initiatives as president was to increase enrollment and retention at Montana State University. She convinced students to take more than 12 credit hours per semester. After all, the state had a policy that students only had to pay for the first 12 credits, yet most students never took advantage of this prior to her arrival. Through the president’s campaign initiative, students began to fare better academically, graduating on time and saving a lot of money.

Cruzado also established a scholarship in the name of Maurice Hilleman, a former Montana State alumni and world-renowned microbiologist who developed over 40 vaccines. Raised poor and without parents in rural Montana, he represented the successful yet often forgotten and underrepresented populations of the state that the president wanted to support.

“How many other Maurice Hillemans are out there?” said Cruzado, wanting to help more people who, through education, can make a difference in the world. Today, MSU Hilleman’s Scholarship Program boasts about 50 students per cohort every year, who receive financial and academic support to become successful students.

“These cohorts include Latinos, Native Americans, and students from low-income backgrounds,” said Cruzado. “Now they have the highest retention rates in the university.”

With her eye on innovation and the future, Cruzado has been able to draw support, both financially and beyond, to improve MSU for the better. When she first arrived at the university, she raised enough funds and garnered help to improve the football field and stadium, thus improving morale.

Ironically, when she initially stepped into her role as the first Latina president, many people doubted her willingness to support a sport like football. But, hearing people’s doubts, she reached out to the quarterback team and listened to their concerns and struggles. Cruzado found herself promising them a better endzone, permanent lights and better concessions before their first home game.

“I had not done the calculations of how to build in such a short time, so I asked them for help. We made it possible and together raised $11 million and built the facility in 10 months flat,” said Cruzado. “We learned to set high goals for ourselves. We learned how good it feels to defy the odds. And that was the glue that brought us together. All the concerns about ‘who is she?’ were gone.”

Cruzado’s can-do attitude and her willingness to dream big and ask for help have clearly been key to her success at her university. In the past year alone, MSU’s College of Nursing received a $101 million donation—the biggest donation of its kind—to expand campuses across the state to meet the demand for nursing in Montana.

“If you invite others to help and show results, then good things start happening. It’s not just for us but for others,” said Cruzado. “We go into higher education because we believe in the promise of helping others and improving their lives.”

A lifelong passion for education

Cruzado, herself, is a product of that mindset. She was the first of four children born in Puerto Rico to a 19-year-old mother and father without college degrees. “My mother was so intelligent, and my father was very industrious and hard-working. They opened the door for me to go to college,” said the president. “In my mother’s mind there was no other option but for me to go to college.”

Cruzado became the first in her family to obtain a bachelor’s degree from the University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez, the only land-grant university on the island. She graduated in 1982 magna cum laude with a bachelor’s degree in comparative literature.

“When I was about to finish my bachelor’s degree, a faculty member asked me if I had thought about graduate school,” said the president. “There were angels along the way that told me what was possible.”

Following this advice and with a love for reading and communication, Cruzado soon became the first in her family to leave Puerto Rico to attend the University of Texas at Arlington. Here, she earned her master’s degree in Spanish language and literature in 1984. By 1986, she also worked as an instructor and ultimately received her PhD. in humanities in 1990.

Cruzado finally returned to Puerto Rico in 1989. She became an instructor in the Spanish language at the Pontifical Catholic University, and then, in 1990, was appointed assistant professor in the Department of Humanities at the University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez (UPRM). She moved up the ranks in teaching and administrative positions until she was named dean in the UPRM College of Arts and Sciences.

“I didn’t envision I’d end up doing this. If you had told me that I would be president of the University of Montana 20 years ago, I would have looked at you with puzzled eyes,” said Cruzado. “My highest aspiration had been to go back to Puerto Rico and teach at a land grant university. I was going to stay there and do research until the day of my retirement.”

Cruzado eventually left UPRM in 2003 to become dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at New Mexico State University. She then became executive vice president, followed by provost, and ultimately interim president of NMSU.   

Although she was originally hesitant about moving to Montana to become MSU’s first Hispanic president, Cruzado has come to love it here. She’s learned that being a Latina allows her to bring to the table a unique and successful leadership style.

“My family, my upbringing, and my heritage are instrumental to everything I do. I cannot define myself outside of that reality,” she said. “It makes me very attuned to individuals. I can show empathy. Plus, we love people and love to tell stories. My culture keeps me balanced.”

After 12 years at MSU’s helm, Cruzado still maintains a deep passion for education. “I want to invest my time, life and love in helping people and in accomplishing goals,” she said.

It seems there’s no better place to do this than in higher education. “Society will do better with more educated people,” concluded Cruzado. “Higher education is very important to democracy and so we have to make the dream of higher education possible for all.” 

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