Achieving Excellence

The Seal of Excelencia recognizes institutions that are trendsetters for the transformation needed to accelerate Latino student success and meet the overall mission of higher education for all students. Angelo State was one of only nine institutions in five states to earn the Seal of Excelencia in 2023, and one of three in Texas. Only 39 total institutions have earned the Seal since the program began in 2018.

President Ronnie D. Hawkins Jr. “The Angelo State campus community is proud to have earned the Seal of Excelencia, and believe it puts an exclamation point on our values-based culture that focuses on community and significance,” said ASU President Ronnie Hawkins Jr. “To be one of only 39 institutions of higher education to receive the Seal of Excelencia is a distinction that accentuates our desire and efforts to be a positive force multiplier for ‘changing family trees’ by advancing Latino student success and meeting the Texas Higher Education Board’s strategic plan to build a talent-strong Texas.”

The Seal of Excelencia is not an award or ranking. It is an independent, rigorous, data-driven certification process to earn the Seal for a period of three years. Institutions must then be re-certified to retain it. The application focuses on three primary criteria: institutional data, programs and practices, and leadership. These criteria are used to explore seven specific areas:

• Enrollment
• Retention
• Transfer policies
• Financial support
• Representation among faculty, staff and administration
• Degree completion
• Campus leadership

Dr. Flor E. Leos Dr. Flor Leos, institutional officer for multicultural & community engagement and success initiatives, led ASU’s application team.

“For each one of these areas, we had to provide a general statement on what we are doing to support our students,” Leos said. “We also had to provide three examples of initiatives, strategies and outcomes that show we are doing it well, along with the supporting data. We couldn’t just provide anecdotal evidence that a particular program is successful. Everything had to be supported by the data.”

“We also had to be able to extrapolate from the data what the benefits are specifically for Latino students,” she added. “We had to show that our programs are not only successful, but also representative for all our students.”

Earning the Seal of Excelencia gives ASU two specific advantages.

“It visually and prominently tells potential students, current students and their families that this is who we are, and we have been acknowledged for that,” Leos said. “Having the Seal is our business card, so to speak, that lets people know that this is what they can expect when they come to ASU. We have been vetted, and we’ve earned this credential from a reputable party.”

“When it comes to federal grant funding, this is really critical,” she added. “There are 571 Hispanic Serving Institutions and 401 Emerging HSIs, and while the number of these institutions has increased over the years, the amount of funding available for them has not. Well, only 39 have the Seal of Excelencia, and ASU is one of them, and that sets us apart.”

“To be one of only 39 institutions of higher education to receive the Seal of Excelencia is a distinction that accentuates our desire and efforts to be a positive force multiplier for ‘changing family trees.’” 

- President Ronnie Hawkins Jr.

That so few institutions hold the Seal of Excelencia also illustrates just how tough the application process is. Several institutions have failed multiple times with their applications, and it took ASU a second attempt after being a finalist with its first application.

“The first year, we submitted various separate programs and their supporting data, but we were told our application needed to be more cohesive for the reviewers,” Leos said. “So I identified three themes – access, removing barriers, and belongingness – as a way to weave our application into a story that let the reviewers see how all of our efforts mesh together to uniquely serve our student population. We just had to paint the reviewers a clearer picture.”

Leos is also quick to credit Brandy Hawkins, executive director of accountability, who contributed a large portion of the supporting data for ASU’s applications, as well as all the members of the ASU application team.

“They all put in the time and effort to provide the information that Brandy and I needed,” Leos said. “It was a real team effort because we needed information and data on programs that span the entire university. They did a lot of the legwork that allowed me to compile the overall application.”

“They are also the ones who are leading our students,” she added. “We were able to submit all these successful programs because we have staff and faculty who are passionate and care, and at the end of the day, they are doing the work that creates the successes.”