Cal State University – Los Angeles, President

Since becoming the seventh president of Cal State – Los Angeles, Covino has led the El Sereno campus through a switch from a quarter calendar to a semester system and spearheaded the campaign for a bioscience incubator. He also launched major initiatives: one focused on community service and the other on training civic leaders. He is a member of the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corp., the board of the Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce and the Association of American Colleges and Universities. Previously, Covino held administrative posts at three Cal State campuses — Fresno, Stanislaus and San Diego — as well as Florida Atlantic University and the University of Illinois at Chicago.

YEARS ON THE LA500: 6