FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

March 3, 2006

HACU’s President celebrates 10^th anniversary

San Antonio, TX – As the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU) celebrates its 20^th Anniversary in 2006, it also marks another significant anniversary.  Dr. Antonio R. Flores, the organization’s third president and chief executive officer, on February 26, 1996, completed 10 years as its leader, half of HACU’s life span.

During Flores’ tenure as president of HACU, the association has nearly tripled its membership (from 161 members in 1996 to 450 in January 2006) and its budget, expanded its programs three-fold, significantly improved legislation for HSIs, increased federal funding for HSIs from $12 million in fiscal 1997 to over $100 million for Fiscal Year 2006, and secured millions of dollars in new private funding for HSIs and associate members.  HACU’s strategic plan calls for even greater gains for its membership in the years ahead.

Flores was instrumental in collaborating with the National Association For Equal Opportunity in Higher Education, which represents the Historically Black Colleges and Universities, and the American Indian Higher Education Consortium, representing Tribal Colleges and Universities, in creating the Alliance for Equity in Higher Education to present a united voice for Minority-Serving Institutions.  He has also been involved with the Hispanic Association for Corporate Responsibility, including a stint as Chairman of the Board for that coalition.

At HACU, he has led the way in fostering international higher education collaborations, in promoting science, math and technology education initiatives, in launching a leadership development program in collaboration with other members of the Alliance, in expanding internship opportunities for Latino students with Federal agencies and major corporations, in creating business partnerships to provide technology, college choice, and student loan materials to Hispanic students and the colleges and universities that serve them.

In addition to his active public policy role in Washington, DC, he has spearheaded the opening of a Western Regional Office for HACU in Sacramento, CA, to impact western state higher education policy and legislation.  Current plans include developing an affiliation with Hispanic-Serving School Districts to more directly and effectively address the transition issues between K-12 and higher education for Hispanic students.

“My tenure as president of HACU has been rewarding and challenging.  I have always had a  passion for higher education and HACU’s impact on policy and legislation to help so many minority students attain their dream of a college education is truly satisfying.  I have enjoyed the last 10 years at HACU and plan on enjoying 10 more,” said Flores.

HACU was established in December 1986 with 18 founding members and is a national organization which represents more than 450 colleges and universities that collectively serve more than two-thirds of the nearly 2 million Hispanic students in higher education.  HACU’s international membership of leading higher education institutions in Latin America and Spain includes nearly 60 flagship universities.

Flores is responsible for the overall leadership, executive management, public and community relations, policy formulation and advocacy, association governance affairs, advancement planning, financial and investment oversight, human resources policies, strategic planning, and programmatic accountability and reporting.  These interrelated responsibilities are carried out with the collaborative and dedicated teamwork of almost 50 professional staff at HACU headquarters in San Antonio, Washington, DC, and Sacramento, CA.

Flores holds a Ph.D. in higher education administration from the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor, a Master of Arts degree in counseling and personnel from Western Michigan University, and undergraduate degrees in business administration and elementary education from Universidad de Guadalajara and Centro Normal Regional, Mexico, respectively.  He has received numerous national recognitions, including several honorary doctorates and distinguished alumni awards. 

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About HACU:  The Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU) was established in 1986 with a founding membership of eighteen institutions.  Today, HACU represents more than 450 colleges and universities committed to Hispanic higher education success in the U.S., Puerto Rico, Latin America, Spain and Portugal.  Although their member institutions in the U. S. represent less than 7% of all higher education institutions nationwide, together they are home to more than two-thirds of all Hispanic college students.  HACU is the only national educational association that represents Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs). HACU is a non-profit.