NAPILI ang Pinay na si Astrid Tuminez, na lumaki sa squatters area sa Pilipinas, bilang kauna-unahang babaeng presidente ng Utah Valley University (UVU) sa United States.
Ayon sa media reports, isinilang at lumaki si Tuminez sa Pilipinas at kasaLukuyang Regional Director for Corporate, External, and Legal Affairs sa Southeast Asia for Microsoft.
Ayon sa report sa Utah Valley University website, pinili si Tuminez ng Utah State Board of Regents bilang ikapitong presidente ng UVU.
“Out of an impressive field of candidates, Dr. Tuminez rose to the top in the search for the next president to lead UVU,” pahayag ni David L. Buhler, Utah Commissioner of Higher Education.
“She articulated a clear and compelling vision for UVU, and she understands the value of collaboration within Utah’s system of public colleges and universities,” dagdag pa nito.
Si Tuminez ay pinili ng 24-member Presidential Search Committee co-chaired ng Regent Steven Lund at UVU Trustee Chair Elaine Dalton mula sa 41 national at international applicants.
Siya ang nakatakdang humalili sa termino ni Matthew S. Holland, na nagsilbi sa UVU President simula noong 2009. Una na niyang inihayag na magbibitiw siya sa puwesto sa Hunyo.
Bago napili bilang UVU President, naglingkod si Tuminez bilang Vice Dean of Research at Assistant Dean of Executive Education sa Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy sa National University of Singapore.
Siya ay isang senior consultant din sa US Institute of Peace, Director of Research at AIG Global Investment, at program officer sa Carnegie Corporation of New York.
Ayon sa kanyang LinkedIn page, nagtapos si Tuminez ng Master of Arts in Soviet Studies sa Harvard University at ang kanyang Doctorate Degree in Political Science and Government sa Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Pinamahalaan din ni Tuminez ang Moscow office ng Harvard Project on Strengthening Democratic Institutions.
Sa isang panayam sa Deseret News, inihayag ni Tuminez na siya ay lumaki sa barung-barong sa Pilipinas.
“I was raised in the slums of the Philippines and I was 5 years old when Catholic nuns offered me and my siblings a chance to go to school. So that changed the entire trajectory of my life, and that’s what makes it so exciting for me to be in a university like UVU,” sabi ni Tuminez.
Ang UVU ang pinakamalaking public university sa state of Utah, at isa sa ilang unibersidad na nag-aalok ng dual-mission mission — ang first-rate teaching university na mayroong vocational programs para sa community college.
