Judy K. Sakaki

Judy K. Sakaki (born c. 1953) is an American academic administrator serving as the seventh president of Sonoma State University. She spent most of her previous academic career as a student affairs administrator in the University of California system. She is the first Japanese-American woman to head a four-year college or university in the United States as well as the first Asian American woman hired as a university president in California and the second woman to serve as president of SSU.[1]

Judy K. Sakaki
7th President of Sonoma State University
Assumed office
July 1, 2016
Preceded byRuben Armiñana
Personal details
Bornc. 1953 (age 67–68)
Oakland, California, U.S.
EducationCalifornia State University, East Bay (BA, MS)
University of California, Berkeley (PhD)

Early life and education

Sakaki's maternal grandparents, her mother and her uncle were held in the Topaz Internment camp in Delta, Utah, during World War II.[2]

Sakani was born and raised in Oakland, California.[3] A first-generation college student, she earned a Bachelor of Arts in human development and Master of Science in educational psychology from California State University, East Bay.[4] She then earned a Ph.D. in Education from University of California, Berkeley.[5]

Career

Before becoming the president of Sonoma State, Sakaki served as vice chancellor of student affairs at University of California, Davis, vice president and dean of student affairs at California State University, Fresno, and vice president for student affairs at the University of California system. In 2009 Sakaki co-chaired a task force to award honorary degrees to approximately 700 Japanese American UC students who were unable to complete their degrees due to their Internment during World War II.[6]

Sakaki succeeded Ruben Armiñana, who emphasized capital projects including the $145 million Green Music Center. Sakaki shifted her focus to students and faculty, cancelling plans to construct a 10,000-seat outdoor concert pavilion adjacent to the Green Music Center, estimated to cost $10.6 million, and stating that the money would be better spent on academic programs.[7]

Sakaki is a former American Council on Education fellow, and an executive fellow of the California State University.

Personal life

On October 9, 2017, the home of Sakaki and her husband, Patrick McCallum, was destroyed by the Tubbs Fire.[8]

References
  1. Meg Mcconahey, "Daring new president shifts focus to getting students, faculty to dream big," The Press Democrat, December 4, 2016, pp. A1, A14-A15.
  2. Meg Mcconahey, "Daring new president shifts focus to getting students, faculty to dream big," The Press Democrat, December 4, 2016, pp. A1.
  3. "Women in Business Awards: Judy K. Sakaki, Sonoma State University". The North Bay Business Journal. 2017-06-22. Retrieved 2020-09-25.
  4. "President". Sonoma State University. 2016-04-06. Retrieved 2020-09-25.
  5. Meg Mcconahey, "Daring new president shifts focus to getting students, faculty to dream big," The Press Democrat, December 4, 2016, pp. A1, A14-A15.
  6. 'Biography: Judith K. Sakaki." The California State University, November 18, 2016.
  7. J.D. Morris,"SSU halts new pavilion," The Press Democrat, September 30, 2016, pp. A1-A2.
  8. Sernoffsky, Evan (October 10, 2017). "Sonoma State president's husband describes harrowing escape from Tubbs Fire". San Francisco Chronicle.
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