Dr. Cindy Miles’ higher education career spans three decades and myriad roles, including teaching, student support, advancement, nonprofit management, and 25 years in executive leadership with 15 years as CEO. For 11 years, she led the Grossmont-Cuyamaca Community College District (CA) and was named Chancellor Emerita upon retiring in 2019.
Previously she served as founding president of the Hialeah Campus-Miami Dade College (FL), vice president/chief operating officer of the League for Innovation in the Community College (international headquarters in AZ), vice president of learning and academic affairs for Community College of Denver (CO), and developmental mathematics faculty member and director of the Single Parents/Displaced Homemakers Transitions Program at Paris Junior College (TX). Before finding her heart in higher education, she worked more than a decade in allied health as a medical technologist. Across all her roles, Dr. Miles brings a commitment to equity-minded student success and inclusive leadership.
Dr. Miles holds a Ph.D. in educational administration and a B.A. in biology from the University of Texas at Austin, which named her Distinguished Graduate in 2001. She has been honored by the Association of California Community College Administrators, Soroptimist International of Coronado, U.S. House of Representatives, California Senate, East San Diego Chamber of Commerce, City of Hialeah, National Council for Marketing & Public Relations, and Association of Community College Trustees. Recently, the League for Innovation in the Community College awarded her with the 2022 Educational Testing Service O’Banion Prize, in recognition of her contributions to transformation in teaching and learning.
Dr. Miles is a national speaker and consultant on such topics as board/CEO relations, leadership for transformational change, organizational culture, educational quality and innovation, equity-minded student success, stewardship and strategy, and organizational spirit. She is co-author of a lighthearted leadership guidebook: Pirate Wisdom: Lessons in Navigating the High Seas of Your Organization. Her strengths are in fostering collaborative organizational environments that balance concern for the institution and its ideals with equitable care for those it serves – building organizations that are both high performing and humane.
Currently, Dr. Miles serves as professor of practice for the Kansas State University – Community College Leadership Program, mentor for the Aspen Institute College Excellence Program – Rising Presidents Fellowship, and executive director for the Global Community College Leadership Network. In 2021-22, she served as interim president of the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges during the Commission’s search for a permanent CEO.
Dr. Miles is a lifelong learner, champion for educational justice, and environmentalist.
