Richard A. Carvajal is a first-generation college graduate and most recently served as president of Valdosta State University since 2017, where he led a campuswide consultative goal-setting and strategic planning effort that paved the way for a seven-percent increase in freshman retention and continuous year-over-year increases in enrollment. Under his leadership, Valdosta State has added programs in data science and other in-demand STEM fields and has significantly increased hands-on learning opportunities for all majors, while retaining and strengthening programs in the arts, business and the health sciences.
Prior to leading Valdosta State, Carvajal served a year as interim president at Darton State College where he was appointed to lead a historic consolidation that resulted in the creation of a new master’s-granting university. He also served as president of Bainbridge State College and held senior leadership roles in student success, enrollment management, and student affairs at Cascadia College, Independence Community College, Coker University, and Eureka College.
Carvajal has also served in government and public affairs positions, including as a Lyndon B. Johnson Congressional Fellow in the U.S. House of Representatives, and is a frequent national speaker on leadership, student success, mental health care in high education, and community partnerships.
Education
Ph.D., Educational Administration (Higher Education), University of South Carolina
M.S., Southern Illinois University Carbondale
B.S., East Central University
