Juliet Garcia is a professor of communications at the University of Texas, Rio Grande Valley, and the senior advisor to the chancellor for community, national and global engagement for the University of Texas system. Previously, she served as president of the University of Texas, Brownsville, a position she held for 22 years. Garcia became the first Mexican-American woman to head a college or university when she was named president of Texas Southmost College in 1986.

Garcia was named one of the Top Ten College Presidents by Time; was inducted into the Texas Women’s Hall of Fame for Lifetime Achievement in Education in 2000; and had a middle school named after her.

Garcia created a partnership between Texas Southmost College and the University of Texas, Brownsville, that helps students in the Rio Grande Valley gain access to higher education by eliminating transfer barriers and providing open admissions. She received her Ph.D. in communications and linguistics from the University of Texas, Austin.

Expertise: Higher education, educational management, Hispanic and Latino communities

Location: Brownsville, Texas

Phone: (956) 882-7147

Heard on NPR: Tell Me More: Education Pioneer Takes Border School To New Level