Angelica M. Barrera appointed AVP for student-athlete excellence

JULY 14, 2023 — Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs Kimberly Andrews Espy today announced the appointment of Angelica M. Barrera as associate vice provost for student-athlete retention and excellence to lead a new initiative to facilitate critical support between divisions of Academics Affairs and UTSA Athletics. Barrera, who has served as associate vice provost for student success since 2019, has begun transitioning to the new role for an August 1 start date.

“This initiative underscores our commitment to student-athlete excellence by ensuring a comprehensive and effective infrastructure that supports the academic needs of our student-athletes off the field,” said Espy. “Having a dedicated position that works directly with Academic Affairs and UTSA Athletics for the benefit of our student-athlete population is key to realizing our continued institutional aspirations to serve both as a model for student success and as a model for operational excellence.”

Barrera brings extensive leadership in advising and student success in both athletics and academic affairs that will cultivate and enhance the experience of Roadrunner student-athletes. As associate vice provost for student-athlete retention and excellence, she will serve as a liaison between Academic Affairs and UTSA Athletics to support prospects, current students and coaches from recruitment, admissions and enrollment all the way through graduation.

“It is an honor to have the opportunity to apply my experience as a student success leader to support this initiative.”

A key responsibility will be establishing a cross-functional team to meet regularly to ensure processes are optimized, remove any barriers, and facilitate clear communication; the team would include representation from Financial Aid, Registrar, Admissions, Advising, Athletics Academic Center, Athletics Compliance and Disability Services, as well as other campus service areas.

She also will collaborate in strategic planning and visioning of student-athlete development to develop new student success programming for student-athletes in coordination with campus partners.

“With UTSA joining the American Athletic Conference this month, we are excited to evolve our partnership with Academic Affairs as part of our commitment to the success of each of our talented student-athletes,” said UTSA Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics Lisa Campos. “As we continue to elevate UTSA as a national brand and enhance our ability to compete at the highest level athletically, it is critical that we continually assess our university-wide processes and support structure so that we also are providing all Roadrunners with the highest level of support in and out of the classroom.”

Campos added that, in her new role, Barrera will collaborate with UTSA Athletics’ strategic initiatives to fulfill the new NCAA Division I holistic student-athlete model, which creates enhanced support for current and former student-athletes, including support for degree completion.

Barrera additionally will be responsible for data collection and assessment reporting of student success measures outside of NCAA-required reporting, to include retention in major, sense of belonging and other key performance indicators for student-athletes.

Barrera joined UTSA in 2017 as executive of director academic advising. She previously held advising roles at Texas State University, Texas A&M University–San Antonio, Texas A&M University–Kingsville and Texas A&M University. She holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Texas A&M–Kingsville.

“I am delighted to serve as associate vice provost for student-athlete retention and excellence and to work collaboratively with colleagues in Academic Affairs, Athletics and across the university for the benefit of our student-athletes,” said Barrera. “As a student success leader who is committed to engaging and encouraging our Roadrunners, I continuously look critically at data and processes, and seek high-impact practices to reach and support the goals of each individual student. It is an honor to have the opportunity to apply my experience as a student success leader to support this initiative.”

Barrera will be part of the leadership teams of both Student Success and Athletics and will report directly to Vice Provost for Student Success Tammy Wyatt.

UTSA competes in 17 intercollegiate sports — baseball, men’s and women’s basketball, men’s and women’s cross country, football, men’s and women’s golf, women’s soccer, softball, men’s and women’s tennis, men’s and women’s indoor and outdoor track & field and women’s volleyball — at the NCAA Division I level.

In 2021, the university announced its plans to join the American Athletic Conference and officially entered the conference July 1.

— Rebecca Luther