Fall Commencement Speaker Announced

Dr. Hector Gonzales Gonzales will address graduates of the College of Education, Archer College of Health and Human Services, and College of Graduate Studies in those academic fields during a 10 a.m. ceremony. He will speak to graduates of the College of Arts and Humanities, College of Business, College of Science and Engineering, and College of Graduate Studies in those academic fields during a 2 p.m. ceremony. About 550 ASU graduates are expected to walk the stage during the two graduation exercises. 

President of Southwest Texas Junior College (SWTJC) since 2012, Gonzales joined SWTJC in 1999 as controller and director of accounting. In 2003, he was promoted to chief academic officer and chief financial officer, serving in that capacity until being named president. In 2011, he was recognized by U.S. President Barack Obama as a Champion of Change for Community Colleges, and he helped lead SWTJC to recognition as a Top 10 Community College by the Aspen Institute in 2012. 

Prior to joining SWTJC, Gonzales served seven years as chief financial officer for Tandem Petroleum Marketers in Uvalde and then five years as a staff accountant and auditor for the Uvalde-based Coleman, Horton and Company LLP accounting and business consulting firm. He was also an adjunct faculty member at Sul Ross State University from 1995-99. 

In addition to his business and academic vocations, Gonzales has been active in the Uvalde community, serving as director of the Uvalde Area Development Foundation and as treasurer of the Uvalde Area Chamber of Commerce. He has also been on the Board of Directors for Uvalde Memorial Hospital since 2001. As chairman of the Board of Directors from 2010-13, he led the hospital’s strategic planning process that included the development of the Kate Marmion Regional Cancer Center. He is also active in Uvalde’s Sacred Heart Catholic Church and School and is a member of Rotary Club International. 

Gonzales began his higher education at SWTJC before transferring to ASU, where he was active in the Delta Sigma Pi business fraternity and graduated with a Bachelor of Business Administration in accounting in 1992. He holds a Master of Business Administration from Sul Ross State University and a doctorate in organizational leadership from the University of the Incarnate Word. 

Also a certified public accountant (CPA) and certified private pilot, Gonzales lives in Uvalde with his wife, Jaclyn, and their daughter, Mia.