The University of New Mexico

NEWS RELEASE

Contact: Carolyn Gonzales 277-5920
cgonzal@unm.edu

Feb. 23, 2009

Hispanic Outlook Ranks UNM among Top Institutions for Hispanic Women Faculty

Hispanic Outlook in Higher Education ranks the University of New Mexico 6 th among four year institutions for having the most Hispanic women as full-time faculty members, as reported in the Feb. 23 issue. The publication also ranks UNM 10 th among Hispanic Serving Institutions with graduate programs for enrolling Hispanic women.

Of the 6,258 faculty on main campus, 576 are Hispanic men, and 1,141 are Hispanic women, cumulatively representing 27 percent of the faculty.

With regard to the enrollment of Hispanic women, of the 25,672 students on campus, 3,258 are Hispanic males, and 4,764 are Hispanic women, cumulatively representing 31 percent of the student body.

Jozi De Leon, UNM vice president for Equity and Inclusion, said, "I am tremendously pleased with the progress that Hispanic women have made in pursuing their educational and professional pursuits. This was certainly not the case three decades ago when I saw few Hispanic women in academia. I hope that we can continue to build the pipeline of Hispanic women in academia and in all professional sectors. We also need to ensure that we retain the number full-time Hispanic female faculty at UNM."

She added, "I do worry, however, that we may be experiencing an imbalance in the number of males pursuing higher education degrees. This seems to cut across all ethnic and racial groups and could have some serious implications. As we strive for equity, we need to bring everyone along."

The magazine reports that between 2000 and 2004, the number of college-bound Hispanic women increased by 22 percent – 6 percent or more over the increase for Hispanic males and non-White males and females.

The publication also indicates that Hispanic women pursuing MBAs will set their sights on Fortune 500 boardrooms where Hispanic males have held 70 of the 100 board seats held by Hispanics.

The good news and opportunity for Hispanic women is countered with economic and social barriers to success, including poverty, early motherhood and a machismo culture, as reported by the Pew Hispanic Center and others, they said.

Statistical information was provided by Integrated Post-Secondary Data System – National Center for Education Statistics, 2007.

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