Dr. Elaine Ahumada is the Public Administration Doctoral Program Director at California Baptist University (CBU) in Riverside, California. Ahumada has 26 years’ experience in higher education administration and teaching. During her tenure at CBU, her accomplishments include being instrumental in developing CBU’s robust online program offerings, launching CBU’s first doctoral program, and adapting the Master of Public Administration program into an online degree. As a seasoned administrator, she has served as a dean, department chair, director for the Master of Public Administration (MPA), and Bachelor of Public Administration programs. Before CBU, Ahumada has served at other institutions in program development, student recruitment, admissions, marketing, assessment, and course development.

While at the University of La Verne, she assisted in the development and delivery of the Master of Science International Administration degree program offered in Taiwan, Thailand, and the United Arab Emirates. Her experience at Hope International University in Fullerton, California was instrumental in establishing processes and protocols for domestic and international graduate student recruitment and admissions. Ahumada is a consultant who works with clients in higher education, government, and non-profit in areas of program development, admissions, and climate assessment. As a lecturer for the University of California Riverside in the School of Public Policy, her focus is on ethical policymaking, building generational wealth, and social mobility for disinvested communities. Ahumada serves on IE 2030 policy collaborative as a contributor of public policy solutions in the Inland Empire a nd is committed to improving communities through collaborative and sustainable efforts.

Dr. Ahumada enjoys travelling, watching documentaries, and spending time with family and friends!