UPDATED: CSUMB president Quiñones appointed as the next president of Cal Poly Pomona.

After about three-and-a-half years as the leader of CSU Monterey Bay, President Vanya Quiñones will be leaving to become president of Cal Poly Pomona on July 1, the California State University announced on Wednesday, March 11. 

In an email sent to students and staff on Wednesday morning, Quiñones said the decision to leave was not an easy one.

"Serving such a remarkable university and working alongside you has been one of the greatest honors of my professional life. Together, we strengthened our community, advanced our mission and remained steadfast in a commitment to ensuring that every student has the opportunity to graduate and move forward financially and personally toward their dreams," she said.

She told students how proud she is of them for their contributions to the community through their leadership, scholarship and service. She lauded faculty and staff for their professionalism and commitment. 

With a nod to the school mascot, Quiñones said that being an Otter is not just a title: "It is a lifelong identity. An Otter is always an Otter. While my next chapter begins at Cal Poly Pomona, a part of my heart will always remain with such an extraordinary raft."

Quiñones joined CSUMB in August 2022 as its fourth president, coming from her role as provost and vice president of academic affairs at Pace University in New York. 

When her formal installation ceremony took place in February 2023, the processional sung by the CSUMB Student Choir was "One Love" by Bob Marley, a quirky beginning signaling changes to come. 

Soon afterward Quiñones shook up executive staff and later reworked the Title IX office, among other changes.

One of her biggest accomplishments at CSUMB was reversing a decline in enrollment, achieving a nearly 30-percent rise in growth. She also led an improvement in increasing graduation rates.

On Feb. 26, she accepted a national award for transformational excellence on behalf of CSUMB, in part based on that growth, along with other improvements to how the university functioned.

Quiñones is also credited with adding more experiential learning opportunities and implementing an institutional mentor program for all undergraduates, as well as increasing research funding and philanthropic giving.

When she assumes leadership of Cal Poly Pomona, she will be the eighth president and the first Latina to hold the position.

Last year, Quiñones and other CSU presidents received raises. Her annual salary was listed at $421,800. The last president of Cal Poly Pomona was making $611,000.

Quiñones will remain at CSUMB through June "and is working closely with the exceptional leadership team at Cal State Monterey Bay to ensure the university continues its forward momentum on strategic initiatives that will strengthen student success, community engagement and the long-term success of the university," according to a university spokesperson.

"During the next few months, I will work even harder to ensure a strong and thoughtful transition and to continue strengthening the community we care so deeply about," Quiñones said in her email.

An interim president will be named by CSU Chancellor Mildred Garcia in the coming months.