Madeline Pumariega, who has served as Miami Dade College’s president since 2021, is featured on Forbes’ 50 Over 50, a special issue recognizing women 50 years old or older who are impacting the world.
The 57-year-old MDC alumna was spotlighted in the innovation category for championing innovation in education.
This month, Pumariega was also named a 2024 South Florida Ultimate CEO, an honor that recognizes Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties’ top business leaders.
Under her leadership MDC launched Florida’s first associate’s and bachelor’s degrees in applied artificial intelligence and debuted AI learning centers at North and Wolfson campuses.
The College also inaugurated North Campus’ $57 million School of Justice training facility this summer, established a partnership with FIFA in the spring and is restarting its soccer program this fall after a three decade-long hiatus.
“This recognition allowed me to showcase how our dynamic learning and teaching hubs are leading in pioneering AI solutions that will shape the future of work,” said Pumariega, who is the first female president in the school’s 63-year history.
Pumariega got her start at MDC as a student athlete. After graduating in 1987, she took a gig as a part-time assistant women’s basketball coach, starting a more than two-decade-long career at MDC.
She’s worked as an academic advisor and adjunct faculty at Kendall Campus, dean of students at Wolfson Campus, dean of students and administration at Medical Campus and president of Wolfson Campus.
Outside of MDC, Pumariega has served as president and chief executive officer of Take Stock in Children of Florida—a non-profit aimed at helping low-income students break the poverty cycle.
She was also the first female and hispanic chancellor of the Florida College System and executive vice president and provost of Tallahassee State College.
Pumariega has been inducted into Miami-Dade County Public Schools’ Alumni Hall of Fame and has received the Latina Pioneer of the Year Award and the Greater Chamber Miami Commerce’s Julia Tuttle Award.
She has a bachelor’s degree in political science from St. Thomas University and a master’s degree in educational leadership and administration from Florida Atlantic University.
