JULY 5, 2022 — As UTSA prepares to launch its largest comprehensive campaign in university history, one university division is firmly aligning its vision, focus and name to drive that campaign’s success. Formerly the Office of the Vice President for Development and Alumni Relations, the division has transitioned its name to the Office of the Vice President for Advancement and Alumni Engagement. Under the leadership of Vice President Karl Miller-Lugo, the change comes months before his team leads Be Bold: A Campaign for Our Future into its public phase this October.
With a focus on advancement, the division is directly responsible for successful fundraising and alumni engagement. Through divisional efforts to cultivate vital relationships across the public and private sectors, it is strengthening and advancing the university’s collaboration efforts and reputation among key stakeholders. These stakeholders continue to create opportunities for UTSA’s bold future to be realized.
Every year, the division collaborates with thousands of donors to raise millions of dollars in support of UTSA’s students, faculty, staff, programs and capital projects. Increased funds for student scholarships, graduate fellowships and endowed faculty positions allow the university to recruit some of the most talented minds to UTSA, and keep that talent as part of its thriving academic community. As a result of the work of the divison’s staff, the university boasts over 80 endowed faculty positions, more than 330 endowed scholarships, nearly 20 endowed graduate fellowships and over 90 program endowments. With 529 total endowments, UTSA’s overall endowment continues to increase with a market value of $277 million.
Within its departments of Development, Operations and Advancement Services; Alumni Engagement; Donor Relations; Corporation and Foundation Engagement; and Athletics Development, the division is committed to telling the UTSA story while creating opportunities for donors, alumni and other supporters to be part of the university’s bold journey toward its strategic destinations of being a national model for student success, a great public research university and an exemplar for strategic growth and innovative excellence. These destinations are the foundation of UTSA President Taylor Eighmy’s 10-Year Strategic Vision, which also includes a goal of growing to 45,000 students by 2028. As UTSA steadily increases its student enrollment year after year, a growing number of alumni accompanies this target goal.
Transitioning to “Alumni Engagement” highlights the office’s dedication to actively building engagement opportunities for UTSA’s more than 150,000 alumni across the globe, over 70% of which have graduated within the last two decades. It is a critical part of the university’s mission to directly engage with its graduates, who are the ambassadors that can raise the stature of a university through their direct support. A primary focus is the operation and effectiveness of the UTSA Alumni Association. The association’s purpose is to engage alumni in activities that advance the university, and deliver valuable services and events where alumni can connect with each other, current students and university leaders. The division invests in programs that create greater accessibility to higher education and support local community education initiatives. In doing so, the office strives to create a sense of pride, purpose and philanthropy: the core of the UTSA Alumni Association.
Some of the Alumni Association’s signature events include the UTSA Alumni Gala, Diploma Dash 5K, UTeeSA Golf Scramble and Roadrunner Nation Alumni Tailgates. Its Birds Up podcast has also gained great exposure and support, highlighting conversations between successful alumni and special guests who have unique stories to share about UTSA. And the UTSA Alumni Association Scholarship offers a remarkable way to positively impact students at the university.
The Office of the Vice President for Advancement and Alumni Engagement is driven by impact, passion, and pride in UTSA. The staff values its relationships with the donors, alumni, friends and partners who create opportunities for impactful change.
“It is a privilege to lead the Division of Advancement and Alumni Engagement during one of the most exciting times in the history of UTSA,” Miller-Lugo said. “The terms ‘advancement’ and ‘engagement’ speak directly to what we do in this division. We are focused on increasing public and private giving through positive relationships with alumni, corporations and friends of UTSA in order to position the university as a premier multicultural research institution focused on student success, research excellence and strategic growth. As we work toward the public phase of our Be Bold campaign, this is the right time to align our division name with our impactful work.”
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This event will acknowledge graduating seniors from the McNair Scholars program at UTSA before inducting the new cohort of scholars into the program.
North Paseo Building (NPB 5.140), Main CampusAt this memorable celebration, UTSA graduates will be introduced one-by-one to cross the stage and accept their doctoral degrees.
Arts Building Recital Hall, Main CampusRoadrunner Walk is an event for graduating students to have a memorable walk on campus to celebrate an important milestone and their achievements. Graduates will walk along the Paseo while being celebrated by the UTSA community, friends, and family members.
Student Union Paseo, Main CampusCelebrate the accomplishments of College of Education and Human Development, College for Health, Community and Policy, College of Sciences and University College.
Alamodome, 100 Montana St.Celebrate the accomplishments of Alvarez College of Business, College of Liberal and Fine Arts and Klesse College of Engineering and Integrated Design.
Alamodome, 100 Montana St.The University of Texas at San Antonio is dedicated to the advancement of knowledge through research and discovery, teaching and learning, community engagement and public service. As an institution of access and excellence, UTSA embraces multicultural traditions and serves as a center for intellectual and creative resources as well as a catalyst for socioeconomic development and the commercialization of intellectual property - for Texas, the nation and the world.
To be a premier public research university, providing access to educational excellence and preparing citizen leaders for the global environment.
We encourage an environment of dialogue and discovery, where integrity, excellence, inclusiveness, respect, collaboration and innovation are fostered.
UTSA is a proud Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) as designated by the U.S. Department of Education .
The University of Texas at San Antonio, a Hispanic Serving Institution situated in a global city that has been a crossroads of peoples and cultures for centuries, values diversity and inclusion in all aspects of university life. As an institution expressly founded to advance the education of Mexican Americans and other underserved communities, our university is committed to promoting access for all. UTSA, a premier public research university, fosters academic excellence through a community of dialogue, discovery and innovation that embraces the uniqueness of each voice.
