October 25, 2018
San Diego Mesa College Welcomes Two Latina Leaders to Key Administrative Positions
By Office of Communications
San Diego Mesa College proudly announces the appointment of two administrators in
key positions for the College. Dr. Leticia P. López has been appointed as the Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) Program Manager and Leticia Abril Díaz has been appointed Director of Mesa’s Extended Opportunity Programs and Services (EOPS) and STAR TRIO Programs.
“We are excited to welcome both of these leaders to important roles on our campus,
and look forward to seeing how their ideas, efforts and leadership shape inclusive
and equity focused programming for our students,” stated Mesa College President Pamela
T. Luster.
Dr. Leticia P. López, after serving as Acting Manager for both the Developing Hispanic-Serving
Institutions – Title V grant and the Title III HSI STEM grant since 2017, has been
selected to serve as the Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) Program Activity Manager at San Diego Mesa College. Previously, she was a Professor
of Spanish for 15 years in the Mesa College Languages Department.
Regardless of her position, Dr. López identifies as a community college advocate,
a Latinx champion of student success, a lifelong learner, and a travel enthusiast.
Dr. Lopez has recently been appointed to the AHSIE (Alliance of Hispanic Serving Institution
Educators) Council for 2018-2020 and the National Science Foundation “Resiste” Grant
Advisory Board at San Diego State University. She is of Cuban heritage and grew up
in Los Angeles, and graduated with a B.S. in Biochemistry and B.A. in Spanish from
Mount St Mary’s College. She went on to earn a Ph.D. in Hispanic Languages and Literature
from UC Santa Barbara.
Leticia Abril Díaz will be heading up Mesa’s Extended Opportunity Programs and Services (EOPS) and STAR TRIO programs. Ms. Díaz has developed a passion and desire to increase awareness of
the importance of higher education and student support programs and services. Leticia
is strongly moved by the power of the community college system and is interested in
the overall student access and achievement of higher educational degrees. Ms. Díaz
has a vested interest in collaborating to cultivate our higher education, and has
extensive experience working in various student services capacities, such as the UCLA
Center for Community College Partnership and the Undergraduate Research Opportunity
Program at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.
Most recently, Ms. Díaz served as the EOPS Supervisor at Southwestern College. She
earned her Associate degree from Southwestern College (SWC); Bachelor of Arts degree
from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and obtained her Master of Arts
degree in Higher Education from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. Currently,
Leticia is pursuing a joint Doctor of Educational Leadership degree at California
State University, San Marcos and at the University of California, San Diego.
Both Dr. López and Ms. Díaz share a passion for community college and the access it
provides to all students in pursuit of higher education. Likewise, our goal at Mesa
is always to facilitate students’ success and to appoint leaders who are committed
to enriching this process through inclusivity and equity. These Latina leaders are
exemplary of this mission, and Mesa is excited to join efforts with them to benefit
our students.
Tags: HSI Grant, EOPS
