2025-26 Fellows of HACU’s Leadership Academy/La Academia de Liderazgo Announced

SAN ANTONIO, TX — September 9, 2025 — (NOTICIAS NEWSWIRE) — The Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities is pleased to announce the 26 fellows who were selected for the seventh cohort of its Leadership Academy/La Academia de Liderazgo. Since its inception, the program has advanced the careers of leaders within a wide range of higher education institutions, demonstrating the value of the program in expanding opportunities at the highest levels of college and university administrations.

Fellows of the program participate in a range of 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 November 2025 in conjunction with HACU’s 39th Annual Conference in Aurora, Colorado. The second seminar will be held in Washington, D.C., in April 2026, 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 in 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 of the program, 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.; Keiser University Miami Campus President Norma Pastor; and Oregon Coast Community College President Marshall Mease Roache Ed.D.

Special thanks to Capital One and Mellon Foundation for their support in providing fellowships to selected recipients.

The 2025-26 Fellows and their home institutions are:

Jonathan Alcántar, Ph.D., University of Northern Colorado*
Wendy Arzate, Malcolm X College
María V. Boccalandro, Ph.D., Dallas College
Antonio M. Bracamonte, Scottsdale Community College*
Jennifer M. Bucalo, Ph.D., Rutgers University-Newark
Joseph Caniglia, Hudson County Community College
Héctor Garza, Ph.D., Imperial Valley College 
Manuel Gómez, Ph.D., Connecticut State Community College**
Wendy Yesenia Lubin, Red Rocks Community College*
Álvaro Andrés Macías, MD, University of California San Diego
Terry C. Mena Ph.D., Northeastern Illinois University
Luvia Moreno, Harold Washington College
Isela Ocegueda, Ph.D., Coastline College
Gema Ortega, Ph.D., Dominican University, Chicago Campus**
Gilberto Pérez, Jr., Ed.D., Goshen College*
Susana Pérez, Ed.D., Dallas College
Madeline Pérez De Jesús, Ph.D., Connecticut State Community College*
Alyssa L. Provencio, Ph.D., University of Central Oklahoma*
Anuchka Ramos-Ruiz, Ph.D., Universidad del Sagrado Corazón**
Carlos Rivera, Hostos Community College
María Luisa Ruiz, Ph.D., Saint Mary’s College of California**
Sanjuanita C. Scott, Ph.D., Northwest Vista College
Stephen M. Trzaskoma, Ph.D., California State University, Los Angeles** 
Jennifer Valcarcel, Hudson County Community College
Jesús M. Velázquez, Ph.D., University of California, Davis
Gabriella Zúñiga-Jairala, Dallas College

*Capital One Fellowship Recipient
**Mellon Foundation Scholarship

About HACU

The Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities, founded in 1986, represents more than 500 colleges and universities in the United States, Latin America, Spain and school districts throughout the U.S. HACU programs and services are available to all students, faculty, and staff at HACU-member institutions. The Association’s headquarters are in San Antonio, Texas, with offices in Washington, D.C., Sacramento, California and Chicago, Illinois.