HACU president to receive Distinguished Alumni award

SAN ANTONIO, Texas --- Antonio R. Flores, president and CEO of the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU), will receive the 2003 Distinguished Alumni Award from the Western Michigan University Alumni Association.

The annual award honors graduates who have distinguished themselves in their respective professions. Western Michigan University Alumni Association President Julie A. Harris described Flores as “a most worthy recipient of the Association’s most prestigious award” in announcing this year’s recipients.

“I am deeply honored to receive this important award from my distinguished colleagues and fellow graduates of Western Michigan University,” said Flores, who will be formally presented with the award at special ceremonies at the university on October 10.

Flores presides over a national association representing 340 colleges and universities serving more than three-fourths of Hispanic college students in the United States. As the nation’s chief spokesman for the higher education needs of the country’s youngest and largest ethnic population, Flores is the recipient of numerous awards and honors for winning record new support and recognition for Hispanic higher education initiatives.

Flores has been named one of the “100 Most Influential Hispanics in the United States” by the editors of Hispanic Business Magazine, and one of the “50 Most Important Hispanics in Business and Technology” by the editors of Hispanic Engineer & Information Technology magazine.

Flores is chair of the Hispanic Association on Corporate Responsibility (HACR), chair of the ¡Adelante! U.S. Education Leadership Fund, and a founding leader of the Alliance for Equity in Higher Education, the nation’s first unified voice for the college and career development needs of all minority college students. He is a board member of numerous national education and leadership associations.

Flores, a veteran of higher education teaching and administrative ranks, obtained his Master of Arts degree in counseling and personnel from Western Michigan University. He later obtained a Ph.D. in higher education administration from the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor. Flores is a former director of programs and services for the Michigan Higher Education Assistance Authority and the Michigan Higher Education Student Loan Authority. He joined HACU as president and CEO in 1996.