CSI Interim President Timothy G. Lynch, a Two-Time CUNY Alum, Tapped for Permanent Role; Online and Continuing Ed Leader Lisa R. Braverman to Lead CUNY SPS; Veteran Administrator Milton Santiago to Steer BCC
Three Top University Administration Appointments Also Announced in Labor Relations, Human Resources and Enrollment Management
Timothy G. Lynch, Lisa R. Braverman and Milton Santiago
The Board of Trustees of The City University of New York last night voted to appoint two outstanding higher education leaders to head the College of Staten Island and the CUNY School of Professional Studies, along with a veteran administrator to be the interim leader at Bronx Community College. The trustees also approved the appointment of three University administrators to oversee labor relations, human resources and enrollment management.
To serve as president of the College of Staten Island, the trustees appointed Dr. Timothy G. Lynch, a product of CUNY schools who has served as the college’s interim president since January 2022. His permanent appointment is effective July 1.
The Board appointed Dr. Lisa R. Braverman, who is the assistant vice president of workforce credentialing and community impact at Mercy College, as the new dean of CUNY SPS. Her appointment is effective August 21.
To lead Bronx Community College, the Board approved the selection of the college’s interim vice president of administration and finance, Dr. Milton Santiago, as interim president, effective August 21.
“Lisa Braverman, Timothy Lynch and Milton Santiago will bring strong records of leadership in higher education administration to CUNY,” said CUNY Chancellor Félix V. Matos Rodríguez. “Dr. Lynch is one of our own who we know will continue to advance the mission of CUNY at CSI with the same passion and results he brought to the interim role. Dr. Braverman’s successes in pioneering programs for adult and online learners will help strengthen our leading school for New Yorkers who want to begin or change their careers. And Dr. Santiago’s experience is well-suited to keep Bronx Community College moving forward while we work to find a permanent leader.”
The appointments of Lynch and Braverman, which followed comprehensive national searches, bring to 16 the number of permanent leaders of CUNY colleges or professional schools placed since May 2019, when Chancellor Matos Rodríguez began his tenure. They add to the University’s senior leadership continuing to fully reflect the diversity of the CUNY student body and of New York.
Homegrown Talent
Timothy G. Lynch, a distinguished historian and accomplished higher education administrator, will assume the permanent role leading CSI after 18 months as its interim president. CSI serves over 10,000 students pursuing bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees in the only public institution of higher education in Staten Island. He is a first-generation college graduate who earned both his baccalaureate and doctoral degrees from CUNY colleges.
“I am so honored to have been chosen as the eighth president of the College of Staten Island,” said incoming President Lynch. “Over the past year and a half, while serving as interim president at CSI, I have truly enjoyed working with the wonderful faculty, staff, students and community who make this College so special and am looking forward to the great work that we are going to do together in the years to come. There are endless opportunities here and I have seen firsthand how CSI can change the lives of our students. I am so thankful for the opportunity to continue to lead this institution as we propel forward on the path to reach its full potential.”
As interim president of CSI, Lynch increased diversity among the college’s faculty and staff, and established a new role on his cabinet overseeing diversity, equity, inclusivity and belonging. He also reduced the college’s structural deficit by 75% in a one-year period, closing a $12 million budget shortfall, and worked with local elected officials and community leaders to secure funding for campus improvements, including an overhaul of the campus track and field complex.
Lynch came to CSI from CUNY’s Queensborough Community College, where he was provost and senior vice president for academic affairs. He also served as QCC’s interim president from 2018 to 2020. Before joining QCC, Lynch served as provost and vice president of academic affairs at SUNY Maritime College, with prior teaching and administrative experience at the California Maritime Academy, a specialized campus of the California State University system.
A native New Yorker, he earned his bachelor’s degree from Brooklyn College and his Ph.D. from the CUNY Graduate Center, both in history.
Lynch succeeds William J. Fritz, who retired in 2022 after 13 years of service to the University.
An Innovator in Adult and Online Ed
Lisa R. Braverman, the incoming dean of CUNY SPS, is a national leader in adult, online and continuing higher education whose experience includes more than 25 years in senior leadership roles in public, private and online colleges. She comes to the school, which serves nearly 4,000 students from Mercy College; there, she served as assistant vice president and helped spearhead a new division of the college that develops workforce programming and credentials for adult and professional studies learners.
“I am absolutely delighted to be joining CUNY to lead this distinctive school,” said incoming Dean Braverman. “Given its impressive history and outstanding staff and faculty, I look forward with excitement to collaborating with the team to transition the CUNY School of Professional Studies to its next chapter of impact and growth, in support of the vision of CUNY and Chancellor Matos Rodríguez.”
She previously served as vice provost for academic and faculty affairs at Excelsior College, and spent four years in the role of dean of the Anthony J. Petrocelli College of Continuing Studies at Fairleigh Dickinson University. In addition, she has served as chief academic officer at Jones International University, associate provost for adult programs at Long Island University, dean of continuing and professional studies at SUNY Fashion Institute of Technology, dean of extended education at New York Institute of Technology, and dean of professional studies at Pratt Institute.
An active participant in associations, Braverman has served on the board of directors for the University Continuing Professional Education Association and the Association for Continuing Higher Education; in 2021, ACHE awarded her its individual leadership award.
Braverman earned a doctorate and two master’s degrees from New York University, and holds a bachelor’s degree from Brandeis University.
The school’s previous leader and founding dean, Dean Emeritus John Mogulescu, retired in August 2021 after a 50-year career at CUNY. Dr. Braverman succeeds Interim Dean Jorge Silva-Puras.
Seasoned Pro in Public Higher Ed
Milton Santiago, who will serve as interim president of Bronx Community College, has served in senior leadership roles at public colleges for more than three decades, including three CUNY colleges. He will oversee a college that serves about 6,700 students.
“I am extremely honored to be asked to serve as interim president of Bronx Community College, an institution that has long been among the most impactful and transformational for the borough and its residents,” said incoming Interim President Santiago. “In the more than 30 years since I first came to CUNY and the Bronx, I have seen the tangible difference that BCC has made in the lives of its students and how effectively it serves its community. I am proud to lead BCC in this transitional period and thank Chancellor Matos Rodríguez and the Board of Trustees for the opportunity.”
Santiago will rise to the interim presidency at BCC from his role as the college’s interim vice president of administration and finance. He previously served as vice president of administration at SUNY Dutchess Community College, overseeing a $70 million budget as the college’s chief financial officer and chief administrative officer.
At CUNY’s Lehman College, Santiago served as the interim vice president who oversaw the School of Continuing and Professional Studies. In the role, he secured New York City Council funding to establish the Bronx Business Tech Incubator. Prior to leading that division, Santiago was the college’s director of external and government relations and at a separate stint with Lehman served as assistant vice president for external affairs and advancement, and served on the president’s cabinet.
Santiago also served as vice president of administration and finance at Westfield State University, at CUNY’s College of Staten Island and at Bunker Hill Community College in Boston.
He earned a bachelor’s degree in sociology and Latin American studies from Binghamton University, a Master of Social Work degree from New York University and an Ed.D. in higher education leadership from the University of Massachusetts-Boston.
Santiago succeeds Thomas Isekenegbe, who will step down at the end of the summer.
Additional University Appointments
The Board of Trustees last night also voted to approve the appointment of Vice Chancellor for University Human Resources Doriane K. Gloria to the newly created role of senior vice chancellor for university HR and labor relations. Vice Chancellor Gloria has played a key role in impact bargaining during the coronavirus pandemic on remote work and the COVID-19 vaccine mandate, accommodations and exceptions. She will have the support of Associate Vice Chancellor for University HR and Labor Relations Steven A. Snyder, who was elevated from his prior role as assistant vice chancellor for HR.
CUNY has also appointed Dr. Reine T. Sarmiento as vice chancellor for enrollment management, a role she has held in an interim capacity since March 2022. As interim vice chancellor, Sarmiento coordinated the successful CUNY Reconnect program which exceeded its goal of enrolling 10,000 students who either left college prior to earning a degree or did not enroll during the coronavirus pandemic; more than 17,000 students have been enrolled through the initiative.
All three Central appointments are members of the Chancellor’s cabinet.
The City University of New York is the nation’s largest urban public university, a transformative engine of social mobility that is a critical component of the lifeblood of New York City. Founded in 1847 as the nation’s first free public institution of higher education, CUNY today has seven community colleges, 11 senior colleges and seven graduate or professional institutions spread across New York City’s five boroughs, serving over 243,000 undergraduate and graduate students and awarding 55,000 degrees each year. CUNY’s mix of quality and affordability propels almost six times as many low-income students into the middle class and beyond as all the Ivy League colleges combined. More than 80 percent of the University’s graduates stay in New York, contributing to all aspects of the city’s economic, civic and cultural life and diversifying the city’s workforce in every sector. CUNY’s graduates and faculty have received many prestigious honors, including 13 Nobel Prizes and 26 MacArthur “Genius” Grants. The University’s historic mission continues to this day: provide a first-rate public education to all students, regardless of means or background. To learn more about CUNY, visit https://www.cuny.edu.
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