Sandra Bulmer embraces the summer journey. She’s biked across the U.S. (south to north and west to east), guided eager first-timers across the Grand Canyon, and, in June, toured Croatia and Slovenia by bike alongside her husband, Steve.
On July 1, the journey took a professional turn when Bulmer became the interim president of Southern Connecticut State University. She brings deep institutional knowledge and a record of success to the position. Bulmer has extensive higher education experience, including 26 years at Southern where she was dean of the College of Health and Human Services (CHHS) since 2014 — and oversaw a period marked by transformational growth.
Under Bulmer’s leadership, the CHHS opened a 94,000-square-foot interdisciplinary building to address workforce and academic needs; introduced an array of innovative degree programs (including a doctorate in social work); expanded partnerships with community health organizations including the Yale New Haven Health System; and secured more than $20 million in external funding to further career partnerships and health equity in Connecticut.
Bulmer also served on the university’s Presidential Leadership Council, helping Southern navigate shifting admission trends and the COVID-19 pandemic.
Alice Forrester, chief executive officer of Clifford Beers Community Health Partners, a network of mental health and social services providers in Connecticut, cheers the appointment: “Dr. Bulmer is a strategic businesswoman, deeply committed to our communities and innovative in her approach to the student population. Sandy Bulmer shows up in Connecticut with extraordinary follow through and commitment to the community nonprofit organizations she encounters — and has a deep respect and generosity of spirit towards the voices of those learning, teaching, and impacted at SCSU.”
A Life Shaped by Drive and Support
Bulmer’s background makes her story — and her new role — especially powerful. “I’ve been a first-generation college student with parents who didn’t know anything about higher education. I attended several public universities, without which I wouldn’t have been able to go to college, and I was also a transfer student,” she says. (In comparison, 49 percent of Southern’s undergraduates are first-gen, and more than 40 percent of the student body are transfer students.)
“Dr. Bulmer centers all decisions on what is best for our students, and she understands the complexities of our students’ lives,” says Jules Tetreault, associate vice president for student affairs and dean of students. “She recognizes that our students deserve to be here and that we must balance high expectations with a high level of support. She sees student well-being as a priority and a necessity — a commitment that is more important than ever as we work to support student success, persistence, and degree completion.”
Bulmer was born in Rhode Island to a military family. Her parents, raised on Long Island, married and both left high school after an unplanned pregnancy. Her father joined the Naval Air Force to support his family, which eventually settled in southern San Diego.
“We lived in a part of the state where most students weren’t tracking toward college,” she says. “It was my coaches and teachers who made college seem possible. They encouraged me and showed me the way.”
Sports were a constant — track and field, cross country, softball, and swimming — providing lessons in goal setting, the importance of hard work, discipline, and time management.
Bulmer’s older sister Linda was a role model as well. The local high school included three grades (10th — 12th); Linda graduated in two years and was awarded a scholarship to Syracuse University. “She pointed the way. A precedent was set, and I knew college was possible,” says Bulmer, of the sister who continues to inspire. Linda Mulvey recently retired as chief academic officer of Syracuse City Schools.
Bulmer was in middle school when her parents divorced. Her mother, now a single parent without a high school diploma, took a job as a bank teller. Then, during the U.S. banking crisis of the ‘80s and ‘90s, she climbed the corporate ladder and eventually became a highly successful consultant — traveling the country to work with clients.
“She is an incredible woman who always embraced opportunity, whether that meant moving to the office headquarters or learning a new software program. I am so inspired by all she accomplished,” says Bulmer. Years later, her mother would help Bulmer during her doctoral studies, sending monthly checks so her daughter wouldn’t need student loans. “She always wanted to help with my education but couldn’t afford to when I was an undergrad. This was her way of showing support, and I will always be grateful. It was one of the most beautiful two years of my life because I had the gift of being a full-time student,” says Bulmer.
From the Private Sector to the Academy
Bulmer’s college path was nonlinear, reflective of national trends. She originally planned to study photojournalism at California Polytechnic in San Luis Obispo. But in step with her long-held interest in health and wellness, she switched majors to physical education and transferred to California State University, Hayward, where she earned her undergraduate degree. Bulmer went on to complete a master’s with a focus on exercise physiology at the University of Oregon.
She was debating a pause in her academic journey when a job posting arrived via fax: fitness director at the Western Athletic Clubs (renamed the Bay Club Company).
Unsure of what the job entailed, Bulmer drove her VW bug to every athletics club in the area to talk with their fitness directors. That drive led to a decade-long career at Western Athletic Clubs during the height of the dot-com boom. “We were opening $40 million sports facilities, presenting at national and international conferences, and growing immensely,” recalls Bulmer. “It was an amazing time, and I realized that what I loved most was teaching.”
Bulmer had taught courses at Berkeley, the University of San Francisco, and Cal State Hayward. A mentor offered sound advice: if teaching was her path, she needed a doctorate. So, Bulmer left her executive role and enrolled full time at Texas Woman’s University. A $7,500 graduate assistantship and her mother’s support carried her through.
Bulmer completed her coursework in two years and would finish her dissertation in Connecticut while working at Southern. She had moved to Cromwell, to join her fiancé Steve, who is now her husband.
She recalls walking into Southern’s Orlando House, résumé in hand, looking for an adjunct teaching position. Serendipitously, an unsuccessful search for a faculty position in the Department of Public Health had just concluded — and Bulmer was offered a one-year special appointment as an assistant professor. She’d later successfully apply for a tenure-track position; in 2003, she received the J. Phillip Smith Outstanding Teaching Award.
In 2014, Bulmer was asked by then-President Mary Papazian to lead the College of Health and Human Services as an interim dean. Bulmer thought the position would be temporary. “But I fell in love with supporting faculty and staff in their critical work of helping our students. I didn’t expect it. But that’s what happened,” she says.
The Road Ahead
On July 1, Bulmer officially stepped into the role of interim president of Southern, bringing not just academic credentials and institutional memory, but a lived experience that mirrors many students’ own.
“When I look at our students, I see aspects of my own story — the uncertainty, the challenges, the mentorship, the possibility,” she says. “I’m here because people believed in me. It’s a privilege to have the chance to do the same for others.”
She views Southern as uniquely well positioned to weather the headwinds facing higher education nationwide. Enrollment is strong and accolades are numerous. In 2025, Southern became Connecticut’s first and only Carnegie-designated Research 2 university — placing it among an elite group of only 139 research-driven universities nationwide. (Only Yale University and the University of Connecticut received a higher R1 Carnegie ranking in the state.)
Southern also is the second-highest producer of Fulbright U.S. Scholars in Connecticut, further solidifying its position as a leader in international academic exchange. Clearly, the university has earned its recent U.S. News & World Report laurels.
“I am incredibly proud of the work we are doing. The importance of our role as a regional comprehensive university cannot be overemphasized,” says Bulmer.
She notes that Southern will stay the course: meeting workforce needs and partnering with nonprofits and industry to support campus and the community-at-large.
“Dr. Bulmer is a terrific choice,” says Dr. Marcella Nunez-Smith, associate dean, health equity research, and the C.N.H Long Professor at the Yale School of Medicine. “I’ve known and worked with her for over 15 years. She is a trustworthy leader who is principled and fair. Her experience, her intellect, and her character make her ideal for this moment. This is really great news for our community.”
Meet Interim President Sandy Bulmer
- An artistic family: Husband, Steve Bulmer, a professional musician, studied at the Eastman School of Music and Northwestern University, specializing in bass and tuba. He retired from a career in information technology and, today, teaches music at the University of Connecticut and performs regionally and nationally. The couple’s daughter, Jenna, is a rising senior at Central Connecticut State University, studying theatre.
- A biking enthusiast: After graduating from high school, Bulmer and a friend biked from Mexico to Canada. She later biked cross country from Seattle, Wash., to Bar Harbor, Me. Her husband shares her passion for the sport. They have biked the Adirondacks, Glacier National Park, the Seville region of Spain, and more. In June, they completed a long-planned, three-week bike tour of Croatia and Slovenia.
- Bulmer is also a hiker: She has been known to kick off the summer with a 24-mile hike across the Grand Canyon, guiding those who hadn’t previously taken the trip. She also climbed Mount Whitney in California, the highest peak in the contiguous U.S.
- Community minded: Bulmer is a recognized community advocate. Most recently, in June 2025, she was named the Industry Superstar by the Greater New Haven Chamber of Commerce at the 23rd annual Health Care and Life Sciences Awards. Under her leadership, the CHHS has partnered with more than 300 agencies across the state — including the Yale New Haven Health System — to increase internship opportunities for students while addressing Connecticut’s critical need for more healthcare providers. She was instrumental in partnering with the Yale School of Public Health to bring the Community Alliance for Research and Engagement (CARE) to Southern’s campus. CARE, a health-equity focused research center, has since secured $13 million in external funding to advance its mission.
