José Luis Cruz Rivera recently completed his first year as the 17th President of Northern Arizona University (NAU). We asked him about key initiatives during his first year, NAU’s niche in the higher ed marketplace, what local restaurants he’s discovered, and his upcoming formal installation in September.
Q: What do you feel your biggest success has been this first year?
A: Well, that’s an easy answer. The fact that I survived the Running of the Freshman at the first home football game!
In all seriousness, while there have been many success stories, I think my biggest success has been learning about and connecting with the people and organizations who live and work at NAU, in Flagstaff and throughout northern Arizona. It has been important to me from day one to understand the values here. Time will be the judge of my success leading and supporting the efforts of our awesome university community, but I have truly enjoyed listening and learning and still feel it is a privilege to serve as the President of NAU and live is this amazing and beautiful community.
Q: Tell us about the plan for AZ residents with household incomes at or below $65,000 to receive free tuition. What motivated you to do this?
A: We call this the Access2Excellence (A2E) initiative. A2E puts the exceptional value of an NAU education within the reach of all students in the State of Arizona. When a student who meets university admission requirements is considering college and comes from a household with an income of $65K or less, they will know from the outset that A2E ensures they will have zero out-of-pocket contributions for tuition. A2E is the result of thoughtful, targeted adjustments of existing resources available to NAU – scholarships, financial aid, Pell grants, and the like. With these adjustments, NAU can now make a clear promise to Arizonans: we will support their educational journey. In addition, even if a student comes from a household making above $65K, NAU remains the lowest cost of attendance institution of higher education in the state, because an NAU education truly is accessible and affordable for all.
As to the motivation, Arizona’s economy continues to be among the most prosperous and fastest-growing in the nation, while the state’s educational attainment is among the lowest. A2E helps bridge our state’s attainment gap and provide an affordable pathway to college, develop and retain talent in our state, power the economy of the future, and ensure our residents get the benefit of economic growth.
Q: What do you feel is NAU’s niche in the Arizona public higher ed marketplace?
A: Our niche is providing students from Arizona and beyond with an excellent, student-centric education of unrivaled value! In fact, we are determined to be a national leader in the delivery of equitable postsecondary value, by demonstrating how innovative educational programs can ensure all Arizonans—regardless of background—have an opportunity to contribute to and benefit from the state’s sustained economic growth. A2E is an example of programing focused on equitable value.
By dramatically increasing our contributions to the number of Arizona residents with high-quality postsecondary degrees and certificates, NAU will help reduce unemployment and underemployment, increase wages, bolster civic engagement and voter participation, advance equity and justice, and improve physical and mental health, while enhancing the social well-being and the economic competitiveness of the state.
Q: As one of the region’s largest employers, how has NAU workplace initiatives had an impact on employee morale and retention?
A: Our recent changes to workplace policies and practices have been the product of much hard work and thoughtful input from many in our NAU community on how we can re-envision our practices to ensure that NAU is a truly exceptional place to work. We are determined to put our people first and be a leading institution of higher education in hybrid and remote work practices – all while maintaining and enhancing the quality and beneficial impact of our services for our students.
The New NAU Workplace has three core initiatives:
- Adopting a hybrid-first approach
- Adopting core business hours and a flexible schedule
- Implementing True Blue Summer Fridays
The New NAU Workplace also includes support for the communities we live and work in. NAU has instituted 16-hour annual community engagement time policy for our employees, allowing them to give back and volunteer meaningfully in their community…and we’re working to similarly enhance our student volunteerism.
While we have much more to do, on my walks to and from work and in emails, I have heard from employees that they feel the work they do is recognized and important, that they are valued, and that the university supports their wellbeing – and that’s exactly the culture we want to have among our NAU community.
Q: Tell us about Elevating Excellence 2025.
A; Shortly after I began my journey as NAU’s 17th President, the NAU community started work on a Strategic Roadmap, intended to guide the strategic direction of our university and clearly articulate our mission and value proposition to all stakeholders. On June 9 — after eight months, 4 drafts, and thousands of points of feedback from our community — I had the privilege of presenting the result of this effort to the Arizona Board of Regents. And I am pleased to report that the roadmap to the New NAU, NAU 2025 Elevating Excellence, is now official.
Elevating Excellence sets forth a bold vision and mission, organized around seven strategic priorities and 29 identified priorities.
The Strategic Priorities are Academic Excellence, Student Success, Commitment to Indigenous Peoples, Impactful Scholarship, Mission-Driven and Diverse Faculty and Staff, Community Engagement, and Sustainable Stewardship of Resources. I’ll call out for particular attention to the priority around community engagement, which goes back to your first question and why it was so important for me to learn and understand community values. As a community-engaged university – here in Flagstaff in particular – we will work together with our home communities to develop mutually beneficial relationships, help solve problems of local and regional significance, contribute to the economic and social vitality of our communities, and partner with employers in the public and private sectors to strengthen workforce connections.
Q: Have you found a favorite restaurant in northern Arizona yet?
A: Well, what I can say is that there are several restaurants in northern Arizona where my family and I have favorites – there are two vegetarians at home, so here, for the sake of illustration, are a few of my favorites: Breakfast at Brandy’s Café, Tourist Home, or the Toasted Owl; the Mac ‘n Cheese at The Lumberyard; the Burgers at Diablo Burger; the Tamales at one of the Down Town Community Market kiosks; steak at Tinderbox; the Bolognese at Brix; the wine list at Josephine’s; the Carrot Cake at Wildflower or the Triple Chocolate Cast Iron Cookie at Shift when looking for something sweet; the pastrami sandwich at the Aspen Deli; any pizza from NiMarco’s; and the mofongo from Boricua Luna. Ask me tomorrow and I will have a more expansive list.
Q: Are there any fun festivities planned around your installation in September?
A: Yes! I am excited to have an official installation ceremony at NAU this fall, when our students and faculty are back on campus in full force. I look forward to engaging with our students, faculty, and staff, heading out into the Flagstaff community, and inviting all to campus for a celebration focused on the vision and direction of the New NAU. A calendar of activities will be shared in early fall. I hope to see many of you then!
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