INNOVADOR AWARD RECIPIENTS SHARED LOVE LEGACY FOR LAREDO A shared lifetime of loving their Laredo community and impacting education was recognized with the awarding of the 2023 Texas A&M International University Innovador Award to Evelyn Summers and her husband, the late Carroll E. Summers, Jr. at TAMIU’s Fall Convocation Ceremony. TAMIU’s Innovador Award was created in 2018 to recognize individuals or organizations making a lasting impact on education, particularly higher education, in Laredo and the South Texas region. It is presented annually alongside Faculty Awards and the State of the University address. Dr. Pablo Arenaz, TAMIU President, said the selection of this year’s Innovador Award honorees truly affirms the values the Award espouses. “This year’s honorees, Evelyn and Carroll E. Summers, created scholarship endowments at both TAMIU and Laredo College, in addition to scholarships with the Laredo Area Community Foundation and the Webb Soil and Water Conservation District. This combined giving provided hundreds of students with educational opportunities they would not have. “Over 141 currently enrolled students benefit from Summers-created scholarships. This love of community and support of higher education has created a lasting, transformational legacy in Laredo, which their son Robert Summers is proudly carrying forward,” Dr. Arenaz observed. Last year’s Innovador Award recipient was the late Frank Staggs. Previous recipients have included Guadalupe and Lilia Martínez Foundation Trustees Bob and Shirley González and State Senator Judith Zaffirini. Find out more at go.tamiu.edu/fall23-convocation LÓPEZ FOUNDATION FORGES NEW STUDENT DESTINIES, LEGACIES AT TAMIU A first-of-its kind $1 million grant is forging new destinies and legacies for 15 TAMIU students. The Hector and Gloria López Foundation (HGLF) has provided an innovative grant offering full tuition assistance for 15 first-generation students at TAMIU — creating pathways to educational attainment and a pipeline to a successful career. López Scholars receive support for tuition and fees, as well as other resources including mentorship, tutoring, housing, study abroad programs, paid internships, leadership development, and more. “It’s so important that young students see themselves represented in academia and can learn from individuals who have insight into their lived experiences,” said Sergio Rodríguez, Foundation CEO and nephew of Hector and Gloria López, “We’re proud to partner with TAMIU because of their 50-year history of serving students from the South Texas region.” “This is much more than a grant,” said TAMIU president Dr. Pablo Arenaz, “this is a visionary investment in the future of our students and their communities. It will act as a catalyst for brighter legacies for our graduates. In turn, their careers will positively impact the communities they call home. The University is honored to share the López Foundation’s partnership and vision -- and to further it by continuing to provide TAMIU students with the resources they deserve and need to succeed,” Dr. Arenaz said. Hector and Gloria López left their estate to the Austin-based Foundation in 2021. Their legacy is represented in the Foundation’s commitment to helping remove traditional barriers to resources and supporting the academic success of first-generation college students in need of financial assistance across Texas. Find out more at go.tamiu.edu/lopez-foundation-grant Board members of The Hector and Gloria López Foundation presented a $1M grant for TAMIU first-generation students. 14
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