José Luis Santos

José Luis Santos, Ph.D. serves as Executive Deputy Commissioner at the Massachusetts Department of Higher Education, providing enterprise-level leadership across strategy, operations, innovation, and system transformation for one of the nation’s most complex public higher education ecosystems.At the intersection of policy, technology, and institutional design, Dr. Santos leads large-scale initiatives that translate public purpose into durable, scalable systems. He initiated and serves as the executive lead of the Department’s first of its kind Innovation Hub, an enterprise-level hub designed to lead statewide conversations, pilot and validate new models, and accelerate the scaling of innovation in partnership with Massachusetts’ public colleges and universities. This work focuses on innovation at the intersection of artificial intelligence, human-centered design, and cross-sector collaboration, while laying the groundwork for future technology-enabled infrastructure.Dr. Santos also provides direct executive oversight of the Office of Student Financial Assistance, a $500M+ enterprise operation, exercises department-wide financial governance through direct supervision of the Chief Financial Officer, and directly supervises the Department’s Deputy Commissioners – aligning executive leadership, strategy, and execution across the organization.His leadership reflects a belief that the AI-enabled era demands a new operating model for higher education. Nationally, Dr. Santos is recognized for bridging vision and execution and for advancing equity-centered systems that endure beyond leadership transitions and funding cycles, grounded in the principle that all people deserve equal access to the future.