Teresa Leyba Ruiz, Ed.D.

Dr. Teresa Leyba Ruiz is the recently appointed President of Glendale Community College (GCC) and has over 28 years of experience serving students, faculty, staff, and the community; the past 22 years have been with MCCCD. For the past 18 months, Dr. Ruiz served as the Interim President of GCC where she has worked to strengthen internal relationships by expanding leadership teams to be more inclusive and collaborative and fostering the creation of cross-functional teams of thought-leaders to focus on completion and transfer rates of GCC students. Prior to the interim presidency, she served as the Vice President of Student Affairs (VPSA), Associate Vice President for Academic & Student Affairs, and Interim Dean of Instruction at GCC. As the VPSA, Dr. Ruiz supported the creation of events to increase enrollment such as High School Senior Saturday, Financial Aid Friday, and the creation of the Financial Aid Outreach Team to support students. Prior to coming to GCC, Dr. Ruiz taught mathematics for 16 years at South Mountain Community College (SMCC), served as the Division Chair for Mathematics, Science & Engineering and led the department in the creation of Student Learning Outcomes that included an assessment plan.

Dr. Ruiz is a proud first generation college student; she understands the uncertainties faced by similar students as they embark on their college career. She received a Doctorate of Higher & Post-Secondary Education from Arizona State University, a Master of Education from Northern Arizona University, and a Bachelor of Arts from Arizona State University