Dr. Amy Diaz has been appointed as Interim President, effective Jan. 5, 2021, while Dr. Gonzales fills the Interim Chancellor role.

Dr. Diaz has more than 25 years of experience serving in higher education, and has held a few positions since joining Maricopa in 2016, including her most recent role as Vice President of Academic Affairs at GateWay, providing leadership and support to over 160 credit and clock hour programs taught by more than 250 residential and adjunct faculty and instructors. She also has served as the college’s acting Dean of Professional & Technical Education as well as the Dean of Liberal Arts & Learning Support.

Before moving to Arizona, Dr. Diaz worked for 22 years at Rock Valley College in Illinois, serving as the Director of Counseling before becoming the Chief Student Affairs Officer of the college, holding titles of AVP, Dean of Students, and Vice President of Student Development. Dr. Diaz has taught as an adjunct in education, educational psychology, mathematics, and student development at the community college and two university settings, both in undergraduate and graduate programs.

Dr. Diaz holds a Doctor of Education in Educational Psychology and a master’s degree in counseling for higher education and student development from Northern Illinois University. She also earned a bachelor’s degree in secondary math education from the University of Iowa.

Dr. Diaz has a broad scope of experience in course and program assessment, evaluation for re-accreditation, strategic enrollment management, early alert, retention practices, academic support, and behavioral intervention team processes. In addition, Dr. Diaz has served as a peer reviewer for the Higher Learning Commission.

An interim VPAA is expected to be named in February 2021.