After 23 years of dedicated service to OLLU, Nina Patrizio Quiñones, associate professor of Spanish and Director for the Biliterate Certificate Program (BCP) officially retired in December 2018. Professor Patrizio Quiñones taught two classes this past spring and completed her service as director for the BCP on half-time professor status in May. Her outstanding service and contributions to students, the OLLU community and foreign language instruction will be missed. 

As a grant-writer, Professor Patrizio Quiñones co-authored the FIPSE (Funding for the Improvement of Post-Secondary Education) grant proposal, which funded the Biliterate Studies Program at OLLU. She served as director of Curriculum Development for the Biliterate Program in those early stages of the program when it focused on the fields of psychology, social work, communications arts, speech pathology and business. After the grant ended, the program was permanently adopted by OLLU and Professor Patrizio Quiñones continued to serve as its director and expanded it to all undergraduate majors.  

Professor Patrizio Quiñones also designed and taught the first graduate Psychology course in Spanish for OLLU’s Psychology Program in spring 2000. Between 2000 and 2004, she co-directed the Project Latin America Program (PLA) at OLLU, which was another grant program, in conjunction with the University of the Incarnate Word and St. Edward’s University, to provide opportunities for students to travel to Brazil or Mexico to gain first-hand experience as interns in different agencies. She supervised students’ experiences and service as interns in different professional agencies in Querétaro, Mexico.

 In addition to service referenced above, Professor Patrizio Quiñones also served OLLU and its students as director of the former Kliesen International Center, (between 2007 and 2009-2010). As an associate professor of Spanish at OLLU, Professor Patrizio Quiñones was a dedicated instructor. In the classroom, she consistently ensured that students achieved an awareness of their abilities, at times hidden abilities, to learn and/or strengthen their proficiency in Spanish.  At the advanced level, Nina encouraged students to learn, apply, and share their enthusiasm of Spanish grammar and literature and culture of Spain and Latin America. 

Finally, Professor Patrizio Quiñones’ work continues to impact the OLLU’s academic disciplines mainly through work and service she carried out on the Undergraduate Program Review Committee and the BCP Task Force just before she officially retired last December.