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MICHAEL RAO
President of Central Michigan University

Since 2000, Central Michigan University President Michael Rao has been focused on raising academic performance at all levels at the university; expanding research, clinical care, and creative work; strengthening the undergraduate experience with opportunities for students to engage themselves in their fields of study and study abroad; developing a focused core of master’s and doctoral degree programs; and making progressive improvements to CMU’s living/learning environment with a focus on increased sustainability and environmental responsibility.

The president plays a major role with constituents who help shape the future of the university by engaging in external partnerships, fundraising, and promoting higher education funding reform in Michigan.

With a committed Board of Trustees, he is leading an effort to study the possibility of opening a much-needed medical school in the region—just one of the many national-scale achievements for regional benefit that Rao encourages in the CMU community. Perhaps most importantly, a new medical school would help address physician shortages in the mid- and northern-Michigan regions and improve healthcare overall.

These and other initiatives are guided by the university’s strategic plan, CMU 2010, which focuses efforts on five priorities to promote regional leadership and attain national eminence.

Rao came to CMU from Montana State University Northern, where he served as chancellor. Previously, Rao served as president of Mission College, where he also served as dean. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, Rao served in the private sector. Prior to his extensive work in California higher education, Rao worked with and then led a team to develop academic master plans for five new branch campuses of the University of Washington and Washington State University.

Rao earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of South Florida and a Ph.D. from the University of Florida. At UF, he served as an assistant to the president with duties that included acting as a liaison to the state and providing leadership in matters of university governance, university relations, budgeting, and affirmative action.

The president’s spouse, Monica Rao, serves as the University Outreach Liaison and is a professional watercolorist and graphic designer. She is a graduate of an Indian polytechnic university and Central Michigan University. They have one son, Miguel. The Rao family is engaged regularly in community activities including civic, cultural, social, and athletic events.

President Rao is a member of the Strategic Economic Investment and Commercialization Board, part of a $2 billion job creation plan, and recently was appointed chair of the Measures of Success subcommittee. He is also a director of the Michigan Educational Trust. Rao is a member of the board of the American Association of State Colleges and Universities (AASCU) and serves on committees of the National Association for State Universities and Land Grant Colleges (NASULGC). He also was a member of a subcommittee of the Cherry Commission on Higher Education and Economic Growth. Rao serves as chair of the Mid-American Conference Council of Presidents and has chaired an NCAA Membership Certification Peer Review Team. The president chairs the board of the Central Michigan University Research Corporation and is a past member of the Mount Pleasant Area Community Foundation Board of Trustees.