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A group of Hispanic faculty members and administrators at the University of Texas at San Antonio says that the institution does not live up to and has not embraced its identity as a Hispanic-serving institution. A petition by La Raza Faculty and Administrator Association urges the university to become a “Hispanic-thriving institution” by making various changes. Those include adopting a strategic plan to become a leading Hispanic-serving institution, beyond talk of “‘inclusive excellence’ that minimizes and obfuscates the majority Latina/o/x and Chicana/o/x student population and region it serves -- except when it benefits from federal monies and grants.”
Other demands are greater investment in Hispanic studies, faculty members and students, a center for Mexican American studies and more community engagement. The group wants living wages for all staff members and the establishment of a well-funded vice provost’s office for HSI initiatives and strategies. “The university must do better in recruiting and hiring leaders that represent and understand our community, and that indeed, want to work, have experience and are experienced with working on our community,” La Raza’s petition states. Some of its criticisms echo those articulated in a recent report by Hispanic full professors at the University of Texas at Austin.
Myron Anderson, vice president for inclusive excellence at San Antonio, said in a statement that the university values La Raza’s “shared commitment to advancing UTSA as a Hispanic-thriving institution.” He added, “We fully embrace our cultural identity by serving the unique needs of our Hispanic/Latino student population and by creating an environment where the university’s faculty, staff and leadership steadily grows to reflect the diversity of our community.” The past two years, in particular, have seen advances to that end, he said, and the university “has consistently demonstrated a moral responsibility to advancing these priorities while, at the same time, recognizing the historical disparities that have existed.” Anderson said he and other administrators look forward to meeting with La Raza this fall “as part of ongoing dialogue that fosters UTSA’s continued transformation.”
