Bridge Builder

Mia Bertagnolli (’88) was Gonzaga born and raised. She sees herself as a bridge, connecting people to things we do so well here . . . our mission, culture, community.

She also plays a major role in helping new leaders to better understand our past so that we can move forward as a university.

“Change can be hard. It’s scary. It can create anxiety,” says Gonzaga’s new interim provost. “But out of change often comes positive initiatives.”

Bertagnolli recognizes the challenge the university faces in replacing key leaders, which has been frequent in recent times. “It has worn away our community’s confidence that new leaders will stay and raises our anxiety as a community,” Bertagnolli reasons.

But it also creates opportunities, she says.

“We have so many initiatives underway that have great momentum,” she says, naming the Institute for Informatics and Applied Technology as one of them. “But we need to focus our attention on working collaboratively and listening to each other as we address our collective priorities rather than trying to do too many things at one time. We have tried to go at a pace that has been impressive, but challenging, and it will be important to take the time to gather feedback and garner buy-in for initiatives like this to be successful.

“It is important for people to be heard and know that things are going to be OK,” she emphasizes.

Her 31 years employed by Gonzaga in increasingly higher levels of leadership, coupled with her four-year undergraduate experience here, make her a stable force through shifting times. She served her first term as associate dean of the College of Arts and Sciences under Marc Manganaro in 2009-10, six years (2011-2017) as chair of the biology department, and interim associate dean of CAS in 2017-18, and again in 2019-20 when the College was led by an interim dean.

Musical chairs continued June 2020-May 2022 during the tumultuous COVID years as Bertagnolli served as director of the Center for Teaching and Advising, an opportunity for her to expand the center’s offerings beyond just academic teaching and advising, as well as her leadership experience.

“I have always had a passion for, and a commitment to, supporting faculty in all their capacities and career trajectories, including scholarship, engagement with our community, helping them with early, mid and end of career decisions,” says Bertagnolli. “My professional goals have changed throughout my career so I know how important it is to help other faculty members understand their own development paths to reach new goals they have set.”

As CTA director she worked with partners across campus to assist with mentoring and collaborating on workshops to help faculty not only teach during the pandemic but also to support them in all aspects of their lives.

While still serving as CTA director, she stepped back into the role of interim associate dean of the College to support Dean Annmarie Caño in 2022 before accepting her most recent position as vice provost for faculty affairs under Provost Sacha Kopp (RIP) in January 2023.

“Every time I accepted the job as interim associate dean was during a time of transition in the College’s leadership. I hope my longtime service as a leader at Gonzaga will provide stability and ease anxieties as we anticipate another significant period of transition in key administrative roles,” Bertagnolli says.

“I see many people across campus who are invested in supporting our people and our mission, always putting our students at the center of what we do. I hope people see me as an example of that, and a bridge to move us forward to a more hope- and joy-filled place,” she continues.

For Bertagnolli, it has never been about titles. “I never imagined one day I’d be provost. I have simply looked at where I can take my passions and interests and apply them in a way that’s most helpful.”

She has always tried to help people understand the value in their partnerships across university lines and by doing so, got to meet with people she may not have previously known or worked with. “My interactions have helped me know more about the university. These partnershipsare valuable to the university,” she says.

“The success of our students depends on all of us, and it is in our team effort that we support them best.”