September 25, 2024

2024-25 Fellows of HACU’s Leadership Academy/La Academia de Liderazgo announced

SAN ANTONIO – The Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities is pleased to announce the 45 fellows who will make up the sixth cohort of its Leadership Academy/La Academia de Liderazgo. The program is designed to increase diverse representation in executive and senior-level positions in higher education.

“The HACU Leadership Academy/La Academia de Liderazgo has a proven record of advancing diverse leaders within a wide range of higher education institutions, demonstrating the value of the program in expanding representation at the highest levels of college and university administrations,” said HACU President and CEO Antonio R. Flores. “We are proud of our previous cohorts in how they have moved into the upper ranks of academia with speed and fully expect this current cohort to match if not exceed our alums in successfully breaking into leadership roles across the nation.”

Fellows participate in an array of leadership development activities preparing them for leadership roles in the full spectrum of institutions of higher learning, with an emphasis on Hispanic-Serving Institutions and Emerging HSIs.

The one-year fellowship program includes webinars and three seminars, with the first seminar held in October 2024 in conjunction with HACU’s 38th Annual Conference in Aurora, Colorado. The second seminar will be held in Washington, D.C., in April 2025, at HACU’s National Capitol Forum. The third seminar will take place at a still to be determined international location.

The Leadership Academy faculty consists of current and former presidents, chancellors and senior administrators and brings over 100 years of combined experience in serving various sectors of higher education, including private/public universities, community colleges and faith-based institutions. Mentorship with a university president or senior-level administrator is a key component, as well as the development of a special project designed to have an impact at the Fellow’s current institution. The following Academy alums have attained president positions: Universidad Central del Caribe President Waleska Crespo-Rivera, Ph.D.; California State University, Fresno President Saúl Jiménez-Sandoval, Ph.D.; Harold Washington College President Daniel López, Jr., Ph.D.; Macalester College President Suzanne Rivera, Ph.D.; New Jersey City University President Andrés Acebo, J.D.; Oklahoma Panhandle State University President Julie Dinger, Ph.D.;College of San Mateo President Manuel Alejandro Pérez, Ed.D.; and Keiser University Miami Campus President Norma Pastor.

Special thanks to Capital One, American Federation of Teachers (AFT) and Carnegie Mellon for their support in providing fellowships to selected recipients.

The 2024-25 Fellows and their home institutions are:

Sylvia Y. Acosta. Ph.D., New Mexico State University Foundation
Vanessa K. Arellano, Ed.D., Pima Community College* 
Tishra L. Beeson, Dr.PH., Central Washington University
Eugene C. Berger, Ph.D., Georgia Gwinnett College
Kristina Campos-Davis. Ph.D., Trinity University
Belkis Torres Capeles, Ph.D., Polk State College
Javier Clavere, D.M.A., University of the Incarnate Word***
Aaron Cortés, Northeastern Illinois University**
Carlos J. Crespo, Dr.PH., University of Illinois, Chicago
Víctor M. Dávila, Texas Lutheran University
José Dela Cruz, Ph.D., Portland Community College 
Alejandro del Carmen, Ph.D., Tarleton State University*** 
Kevin Dvorak, Ph.D., Nova Southeastern University*** 
Jorge F. Figueroa, Ph.D., Texas Woman’s University
Debra Flores, Ph.D., Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center**
Georgia Flores, Northeast Lakeview College
Deborah García, University of Texas at Arlington
Juan Manuel González Fernández, Ph.D., Universidad de Monterrey***
Jessica González Uhlig, Ed.D., Our Lady of the Lake University** 
Juan Pablo Pardo-Guerra, Ph.D., University of California, San Diego
Felipe Hinojosa, Ph.D., Baylor University***
Luis Juárez, Ed.D., Criswell College***
Teresita Levy, Ph.D., Lehman College, CUNY***
Alberto Mendoza González Larreynaga, Antelope Valley College
Neva Lozada, Ed.D., Kean University
Liliana A. Madrid, Meredith College
Lorena V. Márquez, Ph.D., University of California, Davis*** 
Araceli Martínez Ortiz, Ph.D., University of Texas at San Antonio 
Mónica M. Medrano, Central Washington University
Alejandra Villalobos Meléndez, Ed.D., University of New Mexico-Taos**
Vanessa Bográn Meling, Ed.D., University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio
Victoria Lynn Moe, San Antonio College
Jessica L. Moreno, Waubonsee Community College
Victoria Obregón, Ph.D., Colorado State University-Pueblo**
Irene Oujo, Ph.D., Fairleigh Dickinson University
Sofia Oviedo, Ph.D., Eugenio María de Hostos Community College 
Olivia Padilla-Jackson, Central New Mexico Community College
Jessenia Paoli, J.D., Bronx Community College
Roberto G. Reyes, Dallas College
Barbara L. Rodríguez, Ph.D., University of New Mexico
Lorri J. Santamaría, Ph.D., California Lutheran University 
Nireata Seals, Ed.D., Central New Mexico Community College
Leticia Villarreal Sosa, Ph.D., University of Texas Rio Grande Valley
Frances Valdovinos, Ed.D., University of California, Riverside
Felisha Herrera Villarreal, Ph.D., San Diego State University