President's Biography

On Nov. 12, 2019, the Central New Mexico Community College (CNM) Governing Board unanimously selected Tracy Hartzler to become the sixth president of CNM. She officially began her presidency on Jan. 1, 2020.

Tracy Hartzler is in her sixth year as President of Central New Mexico Community College (CNM), which serves the largest undergraduate student body in New Mexico. Under her leadership, the College remains committed to developing and strengthening partnerships with private-sector industry leaders, as well as education, government and community leaders, so the College can produce the workforce of the future that will help power student success, economic success, and a better quality of life for all New Mexicans.

President Hartzler remains committed to creating a sustainable future for the College. She helped establish the Collaborative for Higher Education Shared Services (CHESS) of New Mexico, an organization of six independent colleges to align processes and leverage technology to better serve learners, employees, and community members. As a founding member of Unmudl, a skills-to-jobs network for working learners, CNM has expanded its workforce training programming to serve national employers with a local presence in New Mexico. 

Recognizing critical workforce needs in central New Mexico, President Hartzler coordinated the statewide legislative effort to establish the state’s significant investments in non-credit workforce training programs. After an initial $20 million investment in workforce training programs, the state established the High-Demand Workforce Training Fund, a $60 million investment. Over the next three years, it will help learners cover the cost of workforce training programs and support paid internship and apprenticeship opportunities. CNM will receive an estimated $20 million as the state’s largest provider of workforce training programs and work-based learning opportunities.

President Hartzler has served the public sector for nearly 30 years in education, government, and policy roles. She earned her Juris Doctorate from the Columbus School of Law at the Catholic University of America. She earned her Master of Education Degree from the University of Virginia with highest honors; and she earned her Bachelor of Arts Degree, cum laude, from Saint Mary’s College in Indiana. She is a member of the New Mexico, Indiana (inactive), and District of Columbia Bars. She currently serves on the national American Association of Community Colleges' Board of Directors and a number of local economic development, healthcare, and workforce boards.