CSU System Board of Governors appoints Rico Munn as next System chancellor

The Board of Governors of the Colorado State University System today confirmed the appointment of Rico Munn as the next chancellor of the CSU System. Munn will serve as executive vice chancellor until June 30, 2027, when current chancellor Tony Frank retires.

The chancellor is the CEO of the CSU System, which includes three campuses – the flagship CSU campus in Fort Collins, led by President Amy Parsons; CSU Pueblo, where Dr. Rhonda Epper was recently named president; and the fully online CSU Global, where Dr. Audra Spicer serves as interim president. The position of chancellor works closely with the Board of Governors on overall leadership and management of the CSU System, based in Denver, while also spearheading government relations on behalf of the System and its campuses.

“The Board of Governors unanimously agrees that Rico Munn is an outstanding choice for CSU’s next chancellor – his breadth and depth of experience, commitment to education at all levels, and strong network across Colorado will benefit CSU and our state for years to come,” Board Chair John Fischer said.

The Board named Munn as sole finalist for the position on Feb. 6. In accordance with Colorado law, there is a mandatory 14-day notice and waiting period following the announcement of a finalist before the Board can enter into an employment agreement. The process for defining the employment agreement, including start date, will begin now that Munn has been officially appointed.

Munn thanked the Board for their support, noting: “The institutions of the CSU System have an extraordinary legacy of serving Colorado — a legacy I am honored and excited to help carry forward. During this transition, my focus will be on deepening relationships with stakeholders across the System by listening carefully to the needs of our campuses, students, faculty, staff, alumni, and external partners. I’ll also work to develop a clear-eyed understanding of the external challenges ahead so that our institutions are positioned to respond thoughtfully and strategically on behalf of the state and communities we serve.”

A longtime Colorado education leader, Munn is currently CSU’s vice president for Metro Denver Engagement and Strategy, having recently concluded a nearly yearlong tenure as interim president of the CSU Pueblo campus. Previously, he served as superintendent of Aurora Public Schools from 2013 to 2023, during which the district eliminated graduation equity gaps and saw a 25% overall increase in graduation rates, a 50% decline in dropout rates, a 70% decline in expulsions, and an overall increase in academic achievement and college readiness. In 2019, he was named Colorado’s “Superintendent of the Year” and Aurora’s “Man of the Year.”

Earlier, he was the executive director of the Colorado Department of Higher Education from 2009-2011 and executive director of the Colorado Department of Regulatory Agencies from 2007-2009, where he oversaw the Colorado divisions of Civil Rights, Banking, Real Estate, Insurance, Financial Services, Securities, Professional Licensure, Public Utilities, and Consumer Counsel. He also spent more than a decade as a litigator and trial attorney with a national law firm and served for a time as chief of staff to CSU President Parsons.

Munn is active in the Metro Denver area’s non-profit community. He served on the board of The Denver Foundation and was a co-founder of the Denver Urban Debate League. He was the principal author of the Denver Police Department’s first-ever policy against “Biased Policing.”

In addition, he was a founding board member for the San Francisco-based Center for Justice and Accountability and spent many years volunteering in the international human rights community with Amnesty International, where he served in national and international leadership roles, including representation of the organization in Los Angeles; Cape Town, South Africa; and Santiago, Chile.

He is a graduate of Midland Lutheran College (now Midland University) in Fremont, Nebraska, where he received his B.A. in secondary education and was named Student Teacher of the Year in 1993. He received his Juris Doctorate from the University of Denver, Sturm College of Law, where he had the honor of being named a Chancellor’s Scholar for his commitment to public interest service.

He was also formerly chair of the CSU System Board of Governors, on which he served for six years after being appointed by Governor John Hickenlooper in 2013.