Colleagues sum up the motivation of Anthony Cruz, Ed.D., president of Milwaukee Area Technical College, in two words: students first.
“The board was particularly impressed by Dr. Cruz’s students-first educational philosophy as well as his in-depth knowledge of MATC and the high regard in which he is held by those with whom he has worked in the past,” said Mark Foley, chairperson of the MATC board of directors.
In Cruz’s words, “At our meetings, at our events and at our connections with our community and employee partners, if the word student or students doesn’t come up, there’s something wrong.”
Cruz has nearly 30 years of higher education experience and was named MATC’s 11th president on July 15, 2024. Before coming to MATC, he served as president at Miami Dade College’s Hialeah Campus for two and half years, then as president at the college’s Kendall Campus, which serves nearly 30,000 students.
“I was really impressed with his ability to speak on the initiatives of (MATC) and how he already has made them his own,” said Jaime Hurtado, a member of the MATC Foundation board. “You can feel that when you speak with him.”
