Frank Sanchez

Dr. Sánchez was formerly President of Rhode Island College (RIC) in Providence, Rhode Island. His impressive track record at RIC included elevating their US News and World Report Social Mobility ranking and modernizing academic facilities, as well as doubling annual fund raising.  During his six-year presidency, the college endowment grew from $28 million to $42 million and federal and state grants increased to $10.3 million annually.  RIC became among the first federally designated, 4-year Hispanic Serving Institutions in New England, and experienced significant growth of diverse students, faculty, staff and executives. Among his many civic and community involvements, he served as member of the board of directors of the United Way of Rhode Island, the Providence Performing Arts Council, the NCAA Division III Presidents Council and as a Senior Fellow at Interfaith America.

Prior to Rhode Island College, Dr. Sánchez was the Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs at The City University of New York, which is comprised of 25 colleges and graduate and professional schools.  He led the development and implementation of the first system-wide strategic plan for student affairs -- supporting over 500,000 students across NYC. He successfully created numerous workforce development initiatives with industry, government and nonprofit entities. During this time, he led the development of the largest “military friendly” higher education system in the country, established city-wide partnerships to support foster youth and connected city, state and federal resources to the most economically disadvantaged students. Earlier in his career, he served as the senior student affairs officer at the University of Colorado at Denver and Anschutz Medical Center and as the Vice President for Student Affairs at Adams State University in southern Colorado.

Dr. Sanchez holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, an MS degree in Student Affairs and Higher Education from Colorado State University and a PhD in Higher Education Administration from Indiana University, Bloomington. In the fall of 2022, Dr. Sánchez received the Indiana University School of Education’s Distinguished Alumni Award for his outstanding work in higher education.