Leroy M. Morishita was appointed interim president of Cal State LA in March 2023.

Morishita has served the California State University over the course of a distinguished career that has spanned 40 years. Most recently, he served the CSU in a consulting role. He participated in a critically important strategic workgroup to identify a multiyear strategy to achieve stable and predictable revenues to support the CSU mission and to maintain affordability for its students, while recognizing and meeting the differing needs of the 23 universities.

Previously, he served as president of Cal State East Bay from 2011 to 2020, first as interim president before being appointed to the permanent position in 2012. Under his leadership, student achievement at CSUEB reached new heights, with graduation and retention rates steadily increasing while equity gaps narrowed.

Morishita has held a variety of leadership positions within the CSU since beginning his career at San Francisco State in 1978. There, he held positions of increasing responsibility over the course of 30 years, ultimately serving as executive vice president and chief financial officer, Administration and Finance. He also served on a number of systemwide and statewide committees focused on budget, investments, human resources and other vital policy issues.

Education

B.A., Psychology, University of California, Berkeley
M.A., Counseling, San Francisco State University
Ed.D., Administration, Planning and Social Policy, Harvard University​​