Michael Benitez

Over the past two decades, Benitez has served higher education in different capacities, including academic and student affairs; diversity, equity and inclusion; and teaching. He brings deep knowledge and experience working in and leading areas in student success, organizational leadership and culture, intercultural development, race and ethnicity, policy and practice, inclusive leadership and pedagogy, and institutional equity, and has authored book chapters and articles on identity development, cultural centers and ethnic studies, hip hop culture, institutional research and campus climates, and faculty development. Dr. Benitez has been featured in educational documentaries, contributed to online magazines, scholarly databases, books, and peer reviewed journals, is often invited by media outlets to conversations on issues of significance, and collaborates with leading national scholars and practitioners.

Dr. Benitez has assumed roles at several institutions throughout his career, including Penn State University, Dickinson College, Lafayette College, Grinnell College, and the University of Puget Sound. He completed both his B.S. and M.Ed. at the Pennsylvania State University (PSU), where he gained interest in pursuing doctoral studies as a TRIO student and McNair Scholar, his Ph.D. at Iowa State University, and has been recognized with multiple leadership and scholarly awards throughout his career, including the Iowa State University College of Human Sciences Alumni Achievement Award.

Dr. Benitez joined MSU Denver in 2019 as vice president for Diversity and Inclusion, where he also serves as an Associate Professor of Multicultural Education the School of Education. Dr. Benitez also serves on the Board of Directors for the National Association of Diversity Officers in Higher

Education (NADOHE), is highly engaged with the National Conference on race and Ethnicity (NCORE) and serves as a subject matter expert for Colorado Inclusive Economy (CIE).