Maria Martinez-Cosio, associate vice provost for faculty development at The University of Texas at Arlington, was one of just four North Texas women honored by Ford Motor Company with a Mujeres Legendarias Award.
Martinez-Cosio, who also is a UTA associate professor of sociology, was honored for leading efforts that resulted in transformational change on the UTA campus in the critical areas of access and success for traditionally underserved populations such as low-income, Hispanic or first-generation students.
"This is a well-deserved honor for the tremendous work Maria has done and continues to do for UTA's incredibly talented students and faculty," UTA Provost Teik C. Lim said. "Maria has always managed to keep the spotlight on the underserved population and how to serve them most effectively".
Martinez-Cosio guided UTA's successful application for the designation of Hispanic-Serving Institution, or HSI, from the U.S. Department of Education in 2014. UTA is the largest public four-year university in Texas designated as an HSI and one of only 10 universities in the nation to achieve the designation of both HSI and R-1: Highest Research Activity in the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education.
The HSI designation allowed UTA to become eligible for additional federal funding for initiatives aimed at expanding educational opportunities and increasing degree attainment rates among all students. In 2015, the U.S. Department of Education awarded UTA a highly competitive, five-year $2.62 million grant to enhance services and increase graduation and retention rates among lower-income and Hispanic students.
"One of UTA's greatest strengths is our diversity among both students and faculty. We want to continue to build upon this by attracting even more Latino and African American faculty members," Martinez-Cosio said. "I sincerely thank Ford Motor Company for honoring the work we are doing, because I believe this will show students the impact you can make by going beyond a bachelor's degree. We want to encourage students from all backgrounds to earn a master's and a Ph.D. and return to campus and teach."
Click here to read more about Maria Martinez-Cosio.
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