SAN ANTONIO -- The Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU) has announced 26 fellows have been selected for the second cohort of its Leadership Academy/La Academia de Liderazgo. Additionally, the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) has awarded Michelle Ferrez, Ed.D., a scholarship to participate in the Leadership Academy. The program is designed to increase diverse representation in executive and senior-level positions in higher education.

La Academia seeks to increase the number of talented individuals who aspire to leadership positions of Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs) and Emerging HSIs. Fellows selected for the program participate in an array of leadership development activities that will not only prepare them for leadership roles in the full spectrum of institutions of higher learning but also within HSIs and Emerging HSIs.

The one-year fellowship program includes three seminars, with the first taking place in October 2020, in conjunction with HACU’s 34th Annual Conference, “Fostering Excellence and Social Justice.” The second seminar will lead into HACU’s 26th Annual Capitol Forum on Hispanic Higher Education in April 2021. The third seminar will be held in late spring or early summer of 2021, with a focus on international collaborations.

More than a dozen nationally recognized current and emeriti presidents and senior-level administrators will serve on the faculty. Mentorship with a university president will be a key component, as will be the development of a special project designed to have an impact at the Fellow’s current institution. •

More information about the HACU Leadership Academy/ La Academia de Liderazgo is available at www.hacu.net/leadershipacademy. •

Cynthia Aguilar, Dallas College Mountain View Campus

Mindy Suzanne Andino, Ed.D., Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania

Gerardo N. Arellano, Ph.D., University of California, San Diego

Gabriela Castañeda, Ed.D., Chapman University

Antonio Delgado, Ed.D., West Chester University of Pennsylvania

Viridiana Diaz, Ed.D., California State University, Sacramento

Dolores Durán-Cerda, Ph.D., Pima Community College

Maria C. Escobar-Lemmon, Ph.D., Texas A&M University

Lydia Falbo, DNP, Morton College

Michelle Ferrez, Ed.D., University of Michigan, Ann Arbor

Rhonda M. Gonzales, Ph.D., The University of Texas at San Antonio

John Morán González, Ph.D., The University of Texas at Austin

Blanca Jara, Morton College

Araceli Lepe Moreno, Indiana University South Bend

Dania Matos, J.D., University of California, Merced

Virginia Meléndez, Ed.D., New Jersey City University

Edwin Murillo, Ph.D., The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga

Lorena Oropeza, Ph.D., University of California, Davis

Amalia V. Pallares, Ph.D., University of Illinois at Chicago

Rubén D. Parra, Ph.D., DePaul University

Marisa E. Pierce, Ed.D., Dallas College North Lake Campus

Pamela Anne Quiroz, Ph.D., University of Houston

Cynthia Ramos, Phoenix College

Steven M. Salcido, California State University, Sacramento

José L. Santos, Ph.D., 2U, Inc.

Mario S. Torres, Jr., Ph.D., Texas A&M University

Sources HACU and GlobeNewswire