May 5, 2022

As I begin my tenure at Aquinas College, my first order of business is to thank Provost Steve Germic for his incredible service as Interim President of Aquinas College since December 2021. His steady hand has led the College through a challenging seven months. His honesty and good humor have infused hope in faculty, staff, students, volunteers and supporters, and inspired a renewed enthusiasm for the good work of the College. Additionally, Provost Germic continued his leadership and support of faculty as they undertook a major academic overhaul from a three-credit to a four-credit course model. Over the past month, I am deeply grateful for his diligent efforts to seamlessly transition presidential responsibilities to me. I now look forward to supporting the Aquinas faculty and Provost Germic as they pursue innovative models and opportunities to serve our students with even greater excellence.

God Bless,

Alicia R. Córdoba D.M.A.

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 Welcome video from Dr. Alicia Córdoba (English)

Welcome video from Dr. Alicia Córdoba (Spanish)

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Highlights of President Córdoba’s academic accomplishments include:

• Leading strategic planning, development and implementation as the inaugural Bierne director to create the Center for Catholic Studies at St. Mary’s, which hosts more than 50 annual programs. Secured national and international recognition for the new initiative within its first four years.
• Maintaining more than $5.4 million in endowed funds for the Center for Catholic Studies, raising funds to ensure continued mission integration throughout the university.  
• Serving as chief mission officer of Benedictine University, which had campuses in Illinois and Arizona, satellite sites throughout the U.S. and class sites in China and Vietnam. 
• Creating a framework as the inaugural director of the Center for Mission Identity at Benedictine University to bring together all Benedictine universities for an annual conference to discuss the Benedictine hallmarks embedded in the curriculum of each. 
• Serving as a tenured professor of music and chair of both the Department of Music and the Department of Fine and Performing Arts at Benedictine University.
• Serving as university liaison to the Dicastery of Human Development as Laudato Si’ University for St. Mary’s, which placed it among the initial cohort of Catholic universities with the Vatican.

Extremely active professionally, Córdoba writes and presents regularly on topics ranging from mission integration and strategic planning to music curriculum and using the arts to develop critical thinking skills. She holds leadership positions with professional organizations, serving as vice president of the Kappa Gamma Phi Catholic Honor Society and on the National Network Board of the Lilly Fellows Program in Humanities and the Arts and on the board of Collegium.