UTSA celebrates Hispanic Heritage Month with education secretary Miguel Cardona

OCTOBER 10, 2022 — UTSA will present its 2022 Hispanic Heritage Month keynote speaker, U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona, in a virtual, livestreamed event at 6 p.m. on Thursday, October 13. Supporting this year’s Hispanic Heritage Month theme, “Unidos: Inclusivity for a Stronger Nation,” the event — A Conversation with Dr. Miguel Cardona — will offer Roadrunners and the community at large an opportunity to discuss pertinent topics impacting the country’s higher education landscape.

UTSA, a Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) and a founding member of the Alliance of Hispanic Serving Research Universities, is committed to generating social mobility and economic prosperity for families and communities in the San Antonio region. Fifty-seven percent of the university’s students identify as Hispanic and nearly 45% will be the first in their families to earn a degree.

Cardona’s work is representative of efforts taking place at UTSA and at other HSIs across the nation to ensure that every student has access to the resources for a better life.

“We are proud to welcome Secretary Cardona, who exemplifies what it means to be an advocate for Latino student success.”

“As a university committed to increasing access to higher education for Latinos and other underrepresented communities, we are proud to welcome Secretary Cardona, who exemplifies what it means to be an advocate for Latino student success,” said UTSA President Taylor Eighmy. “Leaders like Dr. Cardona are crucial to the work of institutions like UTSA that are purposefully implementing policies to create an academic environment where students from all backgrounds can excel.”

Cardona was sworn in as the 12th Secretary of Education in March 2021. Prior to that, he was the commissioner of education in Connecticut, where he spearheaded efforts to safely reopen the state’s schools in the aftermath of COVID-19.

Since late August, Cardona has spent much of his time advocating for the Biden Administration’s Student Debt Relief plan, the U.S. Department of Education’s three-pronged approach to addressing the burden of growing college costs. He has discussed the plan with various media outlets, including NBC, CBS, Fox News and NPR’s All Things Considered.

In September, Cardona launched the Road to Success Back to School Bus Tour with First Lady Jill Biden. The week-long, multi-state road trip showcased how schools are helping students recover and thrive in the aftermath of COVID-19. Cardona used the stops along the tour to discuss the debt forgiveness plan and public service loan forgiveness, early childhood education and mental health in higher education—some of the topics he plans to discuss during his virtual visit on Thursday.

A first-generation college graduate, Cardona hopes that his own experiences can be an example to other first-generation students. He plans to discuss how higher education leaders can embrace what he calls “a new vision of college excellence” that meets the needs of underrepresented students. The student loan program and a look at resources to address mental health issues on campus are also top of mind for him.