As UTSA continues to honor Hispanic Heritage Month by showcasing community leaders, faculty, staff, and students under the theme of “Voces de Resistencia - Visions of Resilience,” the College of Education and Human Development is proud to contribute to the month’s events.
Dedicated to the mission of being a college guided by principles of community, integrity, equity, excellence, and diversity, numerous COEHD faculty are helping organize and participate in the university’s month-long events.
“I am so proud of the COEHD faculty who have offered their support to the university’s events during Hispanic Heritage Month,” Dr. Margo DelliCarpini, Dean of COEHD said. “Our professors have a wealth of knowledge and experience in the field and are dedicated to UTSA’s commitment to serving the community as a Hispanic Serving Institution.”
During the university’s first event, “What does it mean to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month,” Mexican American Studies professor Dr. Lilliana Saldaña, assistant professor Dr. Claudia García-Louis and assistant professor Marissa Aki'Nene Muñoz lent their expertise and experiences to the discussion.
The event covered topics including the ancestral place name of San Antonio, Texas, Yanawena; the significance of celebrating Mexican American, Indigenous, and Afro-Latina/x/o resistance; creating a scholarship in the face of racial violence, Indigenous erasure, and anti-Blackness and panelists discussed their intersectional identities as scholars at a university created to serve a historically underserved community. The event ended with an open forum for questions but was mostly met with praise from attendees for the thoughtful discussion and education.
In an event scheduled for Wednesday, September, 30 from 11:30 a.m. – 1 p.m., Rosie Castro, civil rights activist, educator, and mother to Julian and Joaquin Castro will deliver a keynote address on the topic of Leadership and the Cesar Chavez Celebration.
The event titled “Legacy La Lucha Sigue From the Past to the Future,” was originally scheduled to take place this past spring during UTSA’s Cesar E. Chavez and Dolores Huerta march, but was rescheduled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Karla Broadus, Project Coordinator African American Studies, was able to secure Ms. Castro’s visit to the rescheduled event.
“It is important for UTSA to host leaders in the community for two reasons, first for mentorship and educational enhancements for our students, and second for UTSA community participation,” Broadus said. “Ms. Castro is a motivator for young people and the parent of two leading political figures in the community.”
UTSA will continue to honor Hispanic Heritage Month, September 15 through October 15, by showcasing community leaders, faculty, staff, and students around significant themes in Latino culture. This month’s events will inspire the UTSA community to face adversity with strength and build resiliency as many Latino immigrants did when leaving their home countries to pursue the American Dream.
Visit UTSA’s Hispanic Heritage Month page to learn more about the celebration and see a list of upcoming events.