Spotlight: Dr. Rita Mild Published July 10, 2024

“I knew I wanted to work for a community college because I am a proud product of community college and loved my experience as a student,” said Dr. Rita Mild, Dean of Health Sciences. 

After growing up in a lower-middle-class family of five siblings, Dr. Mild remembers her mother's emphasis on the importance and value of education. This motivation spurred Dr. Mild to earn advanced degrees. 

Dr. Mild attended Pima Community College in Tucson, Arizona, and continued her academic journey at the University of Arizona where she earned her Bachelor of Science in Molecular and Cellular Biology as well as a PhD in Microbiology. 

Her passion for microbiology began when a friend in her undergraduate program invited her to experience working in a microbiology lab. “I had never taken microbiology, and instantly fell in love with the invisible world, as it applies to food safety.” 

“After graduating, I needed work, so I Googled ‘microbiology teaching jobs’ and Rose State

popped up!” Dr. Mild has been at Rose State College for 12 years and primarily teaches Introduction to Clinical Microbiology. She has been the Dean of Health Sciences since 2021. 

Dr. Mild’s favorite part about working with students is, “Seeing students do what they said they would do! The goal was met. The NCLEX, slayed. The radiograph, flawless.” She can support them along the way and encourage a sense of pride because earning a degree is, “No easy feat, especially when life is always trying to interrupt.” 

Dr. Mild’s advice for incoming college students is to, “Start where you are. Life is so much about timing, and your time will come. In fact, your time is now. So, why not you? Why not now? And, enjoy the now, because it will quickly be the past.” 

To learn more about Rose State’s Health Sciences degrees, please visit rose.edu.