SEPTEMBER 19, 2023 — UTSA has received a five-year grant to develop a more inclusive workforce seeking to join the professoriate in higher education’s science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) disciplines. The award, intended to attract underrepresented faculty through focused mentoring and support, is part of a larger, $3.2 million grant given to an alliance of five academic institutions in The University of Texas System.
In the STEM disciplines, recruitment and retention of employees from different backgrounds has been and continues to be a challenge in the United States. This is especially true in higher education where few people from underrepresented backgrounds join the faculty ranks.
Through the National Science Foundation’s Alliances for Graduate Education and the Professoriate (NSF AGEP) program, UTSA will help The University of Texas System recruit and retain advanced doctoral students, postdoctoral fellows and junior faculty through the tenure and promotion process, a challenge prevalent in higher education.
The Texas program will include 100 individuals. About 15 will be from UTSA. Participants will receive mentoring to tackle systemic barriers. Throughout the mentorship period, the participants' experiences will be documented to analyze the training’s effectiveness.
Zachary Tonzetich, UTSA associate professor of chemistry, will be the Principal Investigator (PI) for the UTSA project, and Ambika Mathur, Senior Vice Provost for Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies and dean of The UTSA Graduate School, will be the co-PI.
“UTSA aspires to become a model for student success, a great public research university, and an exemplar for strategic growth and innovative excellence,” Mathur said. “We are appreciative of the National Science Foundation for recognizing the need to ensure our post-doctoral fellow and junior faculty pipeline remains inclusive. This program is well aligned with the mission and core values of UTSA and will have a broad economic and intellectual impact on San Antonio and our community.”
The AGEP supports higher education alliances with strategies in place to increase the number of historically underrepresented STEM faculty and promote systemic change.
“UTSA’s participation in the AGEP alliance will provide our graduate students and trainees with focused training and support to help them achieve their goal of joining STEM faculties in the UT System,” Tonzetich said. “The program will ensure that the 21st century academic workforce better reflects the broad backgrounds and experiences of our future undergraduate students.”
UTSA’s share of the funding is $302,697. The remaining funds will be distributed among the lead institution, UT Arlington, and the other partner institutions: UT-Dallas, UT-El Paso and UT-Austin. All five schools are designated as Tier One universities. Four of the five, including UTSA, are also Hispanic Serving Institutions.
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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.
