Steve and Tami Griffin have given a $100,000 gift to the UTSA College of Education and Human Development’s Urban School Leaders Collaborative.
DECEMBER 1, 2022 — The UTSA College of Education and Human Development’s (COEHD) Urban School Leaders Collaborative (USLC) has received a $100,000 gift from UTSA Alumni Association members and long-time university supporters Tami ‘94 and Steve Griffin ‘92, M.S. ‘94.
The money will help fund the Betty Lou Griffin and Bertha Rae Damon Endowed Graduate Research Fellowship in Education that the couple established for the USLC in 2016. Named in honor of Steve and Tami Griffin’s mothers, respectively, the fellowship is awarded to all USLC students during their final semester.
A partnership between UTSA and school districts in South Bexar County, the USLC is a cohort-based principal preparation program dedicated to supporting and retaining emerging leaders in the school districts. The fellowship helps to defray the costs associated with obtaining a master’s degree and state certification exams needed to practice as equity-driven principals in their school districts. Through the program, UTSA trains transformational leaders who are committed to working effectively in diverse, ambiguous and challenging school environments.
The fellowship also supports the travel costs to send USLC members to the annual University Council Educational Administration. This year, 13 students from the USLC presented their research at the conference.
Tami and Steve Griffin joined COEHD Dean Mario Torres (left to right; front row) and this year’s USLC cohort at Perales Elementary School on Wednesday to announce their gift.
In addition to being alumni, the Griffins have two daughters who are UTSA alumni. Their third and youngest daughter is currently attending UTSA. The couple is passionate about the high-quality education UTSA provides and its bold commitment to student success.
The Griffins also have strong personal connections to teaching. Tami graduated from UTSA with a degree in interdisciplinary studies and works as the counselor at Christian Evers Elementary School in the Northside ISD. Steve is a former professor of the UTSA Margie and Bill Klesse College of Engineering and Integrated Design and a current doctoral candidate in the Klesse College’s mechanical engineering department.
“There are a lot of great teachers who would love to get a master's degree but just can't afford it,” Steve Griffin said. “With this scholarship, we hope it will enable them to focus more on their job as opposed to other distractions like, ‘How am I going to pay for college?’”
Steve Griffin’s mother and father, Betty Lou and Frank Griffin, were educators in San Antonio. In 1975, Betty Lou Griffin received her master’s degree in early childhood and elementary education from UTSA, becoming one of the university’s earliest graduates.
Tami Griffin’s mother, Bertha Rae Damon, grew up in Ohio and worked in a factory during World War II. She met and married Vernon “Pop” Victor Damon who later retired from the U.S. Air Force as a tech sergeant. Bertha was a supportive military spouse, accompanying her husband to various posts across the globe, raising four children and eventually settling in San Antonio.
The Griffins announced their latest gift on Wednesday, November 30, at Perales Elementary School in Edgewood ISD.
With their additional gift, the Griffins hope to continue honoring their mothers’ commitments to education while helping today's educators further their academic careers.
“Both of our mothers believed strongly in giving back, so I think they would be very happy about this scholarship,” Tami Griffin said.
UTSA Today is produced by University Communications and Marketing, the official news source of The University of Texas at San Antonio. Send your feedback to news@utsa.edu. Keep up-to-date on UTSA news by visiting UTSA Today. Connect with UTSA online at Facebook, Twitter, Youtube and Instagram.
Don’t know where to start in looking for a job or internship? Virtually join in a live job/internship search navigation lab-style workshop. Follow along to bookmark and save opportunities you are interested in applying for.
Student Union (SU 2.02.04,) Main CampusDon’t know where to start in looking for a job or internship? 🔍 Primary platforms utilized during this workshop are Handshake and LinkedIn. Some industry-specific job search boards may be utilized.
Student Union (SU 2.02.04,) Main CampusFirst Friday Stargazing gives anyone free access to the night sky using university telescopes and teaching equipment. Weather permitting, experienced astronomers will provide a handful of telescopes of varying designs, give training on how each operates, and point to various astronomical objects that may appear in the sky for that given time of the year. If you have a telescope and do not know how to operate it, feel free to bring it and get instructions on its use.
4th Floor of Flawn Science Building, Main CampusThe 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.
