UTEP became the nation\u2019s\u00a0top\u00a0open\u00a0access\u00a0R1 university\u00a0as identified\u00a0by the\u00a0Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education<\/a>.\u00a0The institution has also gained national recognition for promoting social and economic mobility while prioritizing student\u00a0achievement.\u00a0<\/p>\n\u201cWhen Diana\u00a0Natalicio\u00a0passed away, there was a lot of interest in continuing her legacy.\u00a0There\u00a0was an idea that UTEP should house an institute where research could\u00a0be generated and created\u00a0and spread to be able to improve opportunities for all students,\u201d N\u00fa\u00f1ez said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The Diana\u00a0Natalicio\u00a0Institute advances student success by using research and practical experience from\u00a0other\u00a0institutions and HSIs to improve higher education through collaboration among universities. The institute analyzes effective practices within HSIs and examines how those strategies can be adapted across institutions.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat students and faculty here can take away, is the power of integrating this idea of providing access to higher education and excellence and believing in the assets of the community of the students who come here and how to build on those assets,\u201d N\u00fa\u00f1ez said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Today, UTEP serves a student population that is 84%\u00a0Hispanic, a foundation\u00a0established\u00a0during\u00a0Natalicio\u2019s\u00a0presidency.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople were not talking about integrating access,\u00a0excellence\u00a0and opportunity the way that Diana was then. She was a pioneer. Now, a lot of people talk about it, but back in the day, she was really the person highlighting that. She really built this operational approach to build student success,\u201d N\u00fa\u00f1ez said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Community members,\u00a0alumni\u00a0and media were invited to the ninth floor of the Education Building for the institute\u2019s open house, celebrating the newly renovated space and honoring\u00a0Natalicio\u2019s\u00a0continued legacy.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cShe was nationally and internationally renowned because she was such a distinctive leader,\u201d N\u00fa\u00f1ez said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The event brought together scholars and institutional leaders to reflect on\u00a0Natalicio\u2019s\u00a0initiatives at UTEP and discuss how her work\u00a0can\u00a0further shape\u00a0the future of higher education.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI really hope that students will realize the importance of the opportunities that they have available to them here,\u201d N\u00fa\u00f1ez said.\u00a0\u201cWhat I hope the students will take from the institute is this campus\u2019s commitment to reaching out to students, trying to meet students where they are and trying to really lift success.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
The Diana\u00a0Natalicio\u00a0Institute continues to conduct research and data analysis that are shared with universities nationwide to promote Hispanic student\u00a0triumph. The institute\u2019s renovated location was funded by a $12.7 million estate gift from\u00a0Natalicio\u00a0and an\u00a0additional\u00a0$1 million from The University of Texas System Board of Regents. Awards and memorabilia honoring\u00a0Natalicio\u2019s\u00a0legacy are displayed throughout the institute.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Vanessa Orozco is a contributor for The Prospector and may be reached at [email\u00a0protected]<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Four years after her death,\u00a0Natalicio\u2019s\u00a0influence\u00a0remains\u00a0deeply rooted at\u00a0The University of Texas at\u00a0El Paso (UTEP), the nation\u2019s leading\u00a0Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI).\u00a0The…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":154250,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[12],"tags":[138,140,139],"class_list":{"0":"post-154249","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-el-paso","8":"tag-el-paso","9":"tag-el-paso-headlines","10":"tag-el-paso-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/154249","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=154249"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/154249\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/154250"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=154249"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=154249"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=154249"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}