Cecilia Burciaga, former assistant to the president and provost for Chicano affairs at Stanford University, died late last month at Stanford Hospital. She was 67 years old and had been suffering from lung cancer.
Burciaga was born in Pomona, California, to Mexican immigrants. She spoke very little English until enrolling in kindergarten. She graduated from California State University Fullerton and later earned a master’s degree in policy studies in education from the University of California at Riverside.
She joined the staff at Stanford in 1974 and served in many posts including director of the summer session, associate dean of graduate studies and research, and assistant provost for faculty affairs. In addition, she and her husband served as resident fellows in a Chicano-themed dormitory on campus. In 1994, her position as associate dean was eliminated and she was let go, prompting student protests.
Burciaga then joined the staff at California State University-Monterey Bay, serving as dean and later associate vice president of student affairs. There, as was the case at Stanford, Burciaga was a strong advocate and mentor for Latino students.
Cecelia Preciado Burciaga
An extraordinary warrior has joined the ancestors. She and Tony were visionary and inspirational. Together and separately they “bore the burden and the heat of the day.” My success was greatly enhanced by their support and encouragement. We must never let Cecelia’s spirit die among those of us who remain. We must lift up her spirit to the coming generations. We must keep on keeping on.
J. Herman Blake