Dr. Cyndia Morales Muñiz
(Pronounced: Seen-dee-ah Mo-rah-les Moon-yeez)
Additional Language: Español (Spanish)
Pronouns: She/Her/Ella
VP of Membership
Council Term: 2020-2023
Director, HSI Culture & Partnerships
Dr. Cyndia Morales Muñiz serves as Director of Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) Culture and Partnerships at the University of Central Florida (UCF). She has worked at UCF for over a decade, having served in various roles within academic and student affairs to champion greater college access and degree attainment among underserved and minoritized students, which strongly informs her work today.
Dr. Muñiz led efforts that resulted in UCF becoming the third four-year public university in the State University System of Florida to be federally recognized as a Hispanic Serving Institution by the U.S. Department of Education in January 2019. She now works across the university to develop a centralized vision for maximizing this designation in a way that meaningfully serves students, faculty, staff, alumni, and community members from diverse backgrounds.
Dr. Muñiz also stewards national partnerships that help advance UCF’s HSI objectives. In addition to her service as Vice President of Membership for the Alliance of Hispanic Serving Institution Educators (AHSIE), she also serves as the university representative for the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU) and Excelencia in Education.
In October 2021, Dr. Muñiz’s leadership resulted in UCF achieving Seal of Excelencia certification, which recognizes institutions who demonstrate positive impact and success in serving Latino students through intentional alignment in data, practice, and leadership.
Dr. Muñiz is a first-generation college graduate, having earned a bachelor’s degree in Sociology from Binghamton University, a master’s degree in Sociology from St. John’s University and a Doctoral degree in Educational Leadership from UCF.