Executive Leadership Team

Chief executive officer of the BOCES. Oversees all BOCES offices and services. She also oversees the executive leadership team, school attorney, certification specialist, and Superintendent Council.

Over a 40-year span, Dr. Gladys I. Cruz has established a distinguished career in education as a teacher and leader at the local, regional, state, and national levels. Cruz is past president of AASA, The School Superintendents Association, the nation’s premier organization representing the more than 13,000 public school superintendents nationwide. She also served as a commissioner of AASA’s Learning 2025 Network: A National Commission on Student Centered-Equity-Focused Education.

Cruz holds a Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction and a master’s degree in Curriculum Development and Instructional Technology from the State University of New York at Albany. In addition, she holds a master’s degree in Bilingual Education and a bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education and English from La Universidad del Turabo in Puerto Rico.

Speaker Request Form

Oversees human resources and all business office operations (including payroll, financial management and planning, rent and capital projects, and contract administration and management), business officials meetings, business operations of the Education Foundation and the Administration and District Services Superintendents’ Subcommittee.

Also oversees all business and financial services, including state aid and financial planning service, BOCES planning and support service, STAC service, shared business manager, GASB45, internal audit, central business office and human resources service, administrative management and planning, claims auditing, fixed assets, Health Insurance Trust, Workers Compensation Consortium, cooperative purchasing and equipment leases.

Also oversees health and safety, risk management, communications, operations and maintenance (O&M), shared O&M, couriers and warehouse operations, information technology, and program reviews. He also participates in the Joint Management Team (JMT) business officials’ meetings.