Denise A. Battles is the current president of SUNY Geneseo campus since 2015. This appointment caps her 25 year career as a professor and education administrator. Dr. Battles received her PhD from UCLA in 1990. She began her career as a Professor at Georgia Southern university, where she served as Assistant and Associate Dean. She served as the Dean of Natural Sciences and Professor of Geology at the University of Northern Colorado until 2012, until being named Provost and Vice Chancellor of Academic Affairs at the University of North Carolina at Wilmington.

Dr. Battles has established her dedication to science education and administrative service. Her lecture, The Case for Public Higher Education: A Personal Perspective on a Public Good, builds off of these experiences. Using the latest data and information, Dr. Battles advocates for the robust support of public higher education in the face of serious challenges to its validity and value. You can watch Dr. Battles' lecture here.