Sumaya Villanueva-Gaines, Ph.D.
Dr. Sumaya Villanueva-Gaines is Assistant Provost for Academic Engagement at John Jay College. She is an alumna of the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the University of Michigan, where she obtained her Bachelors of Art, Masters of Art, and Doctoral Degrees in Sociology in 1993, 1996, and 2002 respectively. In her role as Assistant Provost for Academic Engagement, she has responsibility for the college’s award-winning Academic Advisement Center, the Center for Career and Professional Development, Learning Technologies, and Academic Support Centers, which include the Math & Science Resource Center, the Modern Language Center, and the Alan Siegel Writing Center. She also has direct oversight of two grant-funded initiatives: Completion for Upper-division Students Program (CUSP), a partnership between John Jay College of Criminal Justice and the Price Family Foundation, that leverages a predictive analytic tool to identify at-risk students and implement various levels of interventions that propel ‘near completers’ to degree completion; and Linking Experience, Academics and Practice (LEAP), which supports students through their first and second years using an integrated approach to major and career advisement, with an emphasis on experiential learning. Her professional interests and expertise focus in the areas of strategic planning, program assessment and evaluation, student learning and development, social justice and inclusion, and leadership. She is keenly interested in the science of happiness, travel, yoga, and meditation.