Michelle Kiss

As associate vice chancellor and chief of staff for the Office of the CSU Board of Trustees, Michelle Kiss serves as the principal strategic and policy advisor to the chancellor and board chair regarding all board governance matters. The primary liaison between and among the Board of Trustees, chancellor and Chancellor’s Council, Michelle ensures the coordination and timely sharing of information vital to the university system’s policies and operations. She also manages strategic public communications on behalf of the board, among other key responsibilities.

Michelle has held significant leaderships roles at the Chancellor’s Office for more than 10 years, including as chief of staff to the chancellor, supervising the design, implementation and assessment of strategic operational initiatives and select programs on behalf of the chancellor; overseeing all executive searches; and serving on and coordinating the work of the Chancellor’s Council and the Chancellor’s Senior Leadership Council.

Michelle has also served as the trustee secretariat of the Board of Trustees, in which role she was the primary liaison between the board and system leadership, presidents, government officials, and internal and external constituents. She also offered strategic executive support for the 25-member Board in advancing university-wide policy goals and priorities.

Michelle began her career at the CSU at Cal State Long Beach and CSU Dominguez Hills as an academic adviser and administrator before moving on to the division of Academic and Student Affairs and the Executive Office at the Office of the Chancellor.

A proud product of California public higher education, Michelle transferred from Long Beach City College to the University of California, Los Angeles, where she earned bachelor’s degrees in political science and sociocultural anthropology. In addition, she holds a master’s degree in public administration from Cal State Long Beach.