Biography
Chris Bustamante, Ed.D., serves as President of Rio Salado College, the largest in headcount of the ten Maricopa Community Colleges located in metropolitan Phoenix, and the largest public online community college in the nation serving approximately 70,000 students annually, including over 43,000 online students.
Dr. Bustamante was appointed to his position in June 2010 after serving as the college’s Interim President, Vice President of Community Development and Student Services, and Dean of Academic Affairs. Previously, he served in senior level government affairs positions for the Maricopa Community College District.
Dr. Bustamante is well-known as an advocate for increasing access to higher education. He has forged transformational partnerships with business, government, and other educational providers while working for Rio Salado College.
He serves as a faculty member for The Institute for Emerging Leadership in Online Learning (IELOL) a leadership development program sponsored by Penn State University and the Sloan Consortium, as Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education (WICHE) Commissioner for Arizona by Governor appointment, and as a member of the WICHE Cooperative for Educational Technologies (WCET) Executive Council, the Commission for Quality and Innovation (CQUIN) Executive Committee, the Council for Adult and Experiential Learning (CAEL) Board of Trustees, and the American Council of Education’s Commission for Lifelong Learning. In addition, Dr. Bustamante serves as an Adjunct Professor for Northern Arizona University in the Master’s of Educational Leadership Program.
Before joining the Maricopa Community College District, Dr. Bustamante served as the Assistant to the Superintendent for Community and Government Relations for the Phoenix Union High School District, and as a Legislative Aide in the Arizona House of Representatives.
