Educator.
Encourager.
Believer in all things persistence.
Dr. Rachael Capua is a higher education leader who has dedicated her career to empowering students and strengthening communities through learning, leadership, and connection. Her journey, however, is a story of overcoming the odds.
Persistence is Power:
Though she didn’t attend her dream school right away, she remained determined and graduated with a full-tuition scholarship. #TransferSuccess
Turn Challenges into Triumphs:
Despite taking the GRE three times, she overcame and completed her doctorate in three years. #EmbraceTheJourney
Meet the Moment:
As a second-generation community college graduate, she’s passionate about helping every student realize their potential to persevere, overcome obstacles, and achieve their goals. #KeepGoingAnyways
Learn More
Dr. Rachael Capua (CAP-you-uh) is a higher education executive and champion for student success whose work centers on helping learners move from uncertainty to purpose, isolation to belonging, and aspiration to achievement. In 2023, she joined Tarleton State University, a founding member of The Texas A&M System, as Vice President for External Operations and Dean of Tarleton State Fort Worth.
In this role, Dr. Cap is a member of the President’s Executive Cabinet and leads Tarleton State’s multi-site and online enterprise, overseeing outreach locations in Fort Worth, Waco, Bryan, and Tarleton State Online, including Extended Education and Workforce Development. She guides strategy and operations for the university’s expanding footprint and oversees the development of Tarleton State Fort Worth, an 80-acre master-planned campus along the Chisholm Trail Parkway.
Previously, Dr. Cap was the founding Director of College and Career Success for the Tarrant To & Through Partnership, where her leadership has helped deliver scholarships, persistence coaching, and wraparound supports to more than 8,000 students across Tarrant County.
A Chancellor’s Scholar at TCU, Dr. Cap earned a bachelor’s degree (magna cum laude) in advertising and public relations, a master’s degree in Adult and Higher Education from the University of Oklahoma, and a doctorate in Higher Education from SMU. She also holds an associate degree from Collin College.
Dr. Cap has been recognized as one of Fort Worth’s Top 500 Most Influential People, a 40 Under 40 honoree, a Bold Woman by Girls Inc., and a Top 50 Latino Leader by the Fort Worth Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. She serves on nonprofit boards of the Tarrant Area Food Bank, Center for Transforming Lives and Bass Hall Performing Arts and completed Harvard’s Women in Higher Education Certificate in 2025.
Dr. Cap's Education
Associate of Arts
Bachelor of Science
Master of Education
Doctor of Education
(Cert) Women in Higher Ed Leadership
Dissertation Research
A Multi-Case Study Identifying Potential Factors Related to Two- to Four-Year Transfer Student Retention and Persistence at Private Institutions
9 Things About Dr. Cap
