The San Antonio Chapter of Financial Executives International (FEI) continued the Dr. Keith Russell Memorial Awards for Academic Excellence this year, recognizing outstanding finance and accounting students from local colleges and universities.
FEI San Antonio presented a $1,000 award to each 4-year university recipient and a $500 award to each Community College recipient.
We are proud to recognize our nominees:
Mario Salazar – BBA, Accounting
Jacoby Turner – Double Major, BBA Finance & Accounting; Minor in Environmental Science & Sustainability
The Academic Awards Dinner was held on Wednesday, February 26, 2025, at 6:00 PM at the San Antonio Country Club. Dr. Harrison Watts and Professor Roger Johnson represented our University at the event.
Please join us in congratulating Mario and Jacoby on this well-deserved recognition of their academic excellence!
As part of the American Psychological Association’s Engaging Psychology’s Future initiative and the National Association of School Psychologists’ Exposure Project, OLLU faculty and students recently connected with high school students across the region to spark interest in careers in psychology.
Drs. Wes Wyble, Marlo Mitchell-Gonzalez, Catalina Roads and Kathryn Anderson, along with students Elena Braunstein, Rachelle Stevens, Kimberly Hawthorne and Susana Cisneros, visited Davenport, Canyon and Jefferson High Schools. During their visits, the team engaged students in meaningful dialogue about the diverse fields within psychology, from clinical and counseling psychology to school psychology and research.
The Visual & New Media Arts program is collaborating with the Sueltenfuss Library to host the Women’s Caucus for Art’s group exhibition, “Becoming & Belonging.” Curator, Paola Nunez Solorio, will announce artist awards and moderate a panel talk with artists. Join us in celebrating Women’s History Month with this art exhibition on March 5th from 6:00:8:00pm.
Becoming & Belonging is a visual arts exhibition exploring the evolving identities of individuals and communities within society and across history. It reflects on the tensions and harmonies between selfhood and society, migration and rootedness, memory and transformation.
In a world shaped by movement and change, identity is never fixed. It unfolds through relationships, environments, and lived experience. This exhibition invites viewers to consider how we shape ourselves—and how we are shaped by others. How does identity evolve over time? Where, and how, do we find spaces of belonging? Do we inhabit existing structures, or do we create new ones?
Through diverse artistic perspectives, Becoming & Belonging speaks to personal journeys of growth, migration, and self-discovery while also engaging collective narratives of heritage, displacement, resilience, and the longing for home. The works on view celebrate multiplicity and transformation, embracing identity as an ongoing act of becoming.
Together, these artists offer a powerful meditation on what it means to belong—reminding us that belonging is not simply a place, but a process.
Amber Ortega, MFA, Coordinator for the International Folk Culture Center has received The Texas Folklife, Community Folklife Fellowship in oral history, audio storytelling, and archiving.
Ortega joins a cohort of 12 culturalists across Texas who will receive training and guidance from Texas Folklife’s digital storytelling initiative, “Stories from Deep in the Heart” which includes mentorship from lead digital archivists in Texas.
Since 2023, Ortega has been conducting interviews with choreographers from Cayey, Puerto Rico to Miami, Florida, and San Antonio, utilizing her experience with curating transdisciplinary discussions and bridging dance practice to deeper insights into culture, human behavior, and research methodologies. During her fellowship, Ortega will be meeting and interviewing dance culture bearers in San Antonio to thread a cohesive narrative line between dance, history, and culture.
As Coordinator for the International Folk Culture Center, archiving the center’s history and preserving the greater story of dance in San Antonio particularly with how that story intersects with the IFCC and OLLU, is tantamount to the work of curating and coordinating dance, folk way, and culture at the center, on campus, and in our Westside neighborhood.
Ortega’s final work along with her cohorts will be released this May.
As part of OLLU’s continued commitment to Operational Excellence and maintaining a safe university campus, all faculty and staff will be required to visibly wear their employee ID at chest level while on campus.
This requirement will become mandatory on Tuesday, March 17.
Please note:
Name tags may still be worn at campus or external events; however, they will not serve as a substitute for the official employee ID.
Staff who wear OLLU uniforms that already display their names will not be required to wear their employee ID.
If you currently have an outdated ID, you may contact ITS to update your information and receive a new card.
Thank you for your cooperation and continued commitment to campus safety.
Leadership will receive additional details and will be responsible for sharing this information with their respective teams.
As I walked early this morning, I reflected on the week that was, the conversations I was invited into, the decisions we made, the processes that led to those decisions, the alignment of my actions with the stewardship of this calling, and the smiles I was blessed to give and receive. That memory alone gave me hundreds of reasons to smile once more.
A few steps ahead of me, I noticed a rectangular object on the ground. At the same time, my attention turned to the beautiful serenading duo of what I believe to be the Purple Martin and the Northern Cardinal. Their arrival some fifteen days ago has signaled the onset of spring, and though they are unaware of it, their song, like clockwork just before 6:00 a.m., lifts my soul each morning.
The rectangular object was a one-dollar bill.
I picked it up and continued my walk, admiring its texture. The almost denim-like weave of the paper was especially notable this morning. As I studied it, I could see the cross-threading of the pulp while George Washington stared back at me. It was as if, in that quiet moment, our nation’s first president spoke to me about his motto of integrity, duty, courtesy, and honesty.
When I turned the bill over, my eyes were drawn to two simple but powerful inscriptions: In God We Trust and E Pluribus Unum.
I smiled again.
E Pluribus Unum: “out of many, one.” From the founding of our nation in 1776, this phrase captured the bold aspiration of uniting diverse colonies, peoples, and perspectives into one shared purpose. Diversity held together by shared values. Many, moving together as one.
As a Catholic university, our congregational founders remind us that we are “rooted in profound confidence in God’s providential love and care for all.” We are all called to further the mission of Jesus. We are all called to unity without uniformity. To conviction without division. To purpose without pride.
At the moment, higher education stands at a crossroads. National enrollments continue to decline. Questions about the value of higher education surface weekly. The pace of change is accelerating. And yet, education remains one of the most powerful equalizers. Education transforms generations. It expands opportunity. It forms citizens. It dignifies lives, service, and work. It lifts families.
I am hard-pressed to think of another institution with the opportunity that stands before us at Our Lady of the Lake University. We have the opportunity, and obligation, to sharpen our mission with focus, to respond boldly to the needs of our time, and to credential learners so they may build livelihoods based on their values. All through a distinctive OLLU way.
E Pluribus Unum. Out of many, one.
We come from different neighborhoods, disciplines, backgrounds, experiences, aspirations, perspectives—and we are united by something deeper. We trust in God. We believe in human dignity. We commit ourselves to excellence. And we move forward, together, as one.
May we model, at our very core, what it means to be children of God who serve, who care, and who lift one another, who lift our students, toward a higher calling.
On Thursday, February 26, during the community hour of 12:30 p.m. to 1:30 p.m., President Abel Chávez will present to faculty and staff the higher education landscape. A thought-provoking presentation that looks at national and local demographics, opinions on higher ed, and OLLU’s comparative standing in San Antonio.
This will be an in-person, brown bag gathering in San Antonio; Houston and RGV campuses will be provided a TEAMS link to attend virtually. Your presence is necessary in shaping a thoughtful direction. As a steward of our university, please join your colleagues for this presentation.
RSVP’s are required. The specific location on campus for San Antonio will be shared soon.
Mark your calendars! Homecoming 2026 is set for February 27 – March 1, and Our Lady of the Lake University is excited to welcome back Saints alumni, friends, and family for a special celebration of 131 years of community and tradition.
This year’s Homecoming promises a full weekend of festivities, beginning Friday, February 27, and continuing through Sunday, March 1. From beloved traditions to opportunities to reconnect with classmates, faculty and fellow Saints, the weekend will showcase the spirit and legacy that make OLLU so special.
To view the schedule of events, sponsorship opportunities, OLLU’s online silent fundraising auction, and donations, visit our Homecoming 2026 Webpage below!
Spirit Week is here, and the Center for Student Involvement — through the leadership of SGA and the Saints Programming Board (SPB) — invites the OLLU community to gather in celebration of our shared identidad.
Rooted in tradition, orgullo, and comunidad, Spirit Week is fully student-programmed and intentionally designed to strengthen belonging across campus. Research consistently affirms what we know to be true at OLLU: when students feel seen, connected, and valued, they are more likely to thrive. This week creates those moments.
Saints street eats
The celebration begins Monday with Saints Street Eats, as SGA sponsors the Mr. Meximum Food Truck in Library Circle from 4:00–6:00 p.m. The first 50 student meals will be provided at no cost, offering an accessible and welcoming space for students to connect and build community.
Honoring the legacy
On Tuesday, we will gather in Renaissance Parlor during community hour for Honoring the Legacy. Participants will write personal notes of gratitude to the Congregation of Divine Providence (CDP) Sisters — a meaningful act that bridges past and present and honors the women whose faith and leadership continue to shape our misión.
Champions Breakfast
Wednesday morning shifts the focus to appreciation. During Champions Breakfast from 9-11, students will host a Faculty and Staff Appreciation event in Renaissance Parlor, offering complimentary bagels and words of thanks to the faculty and staff who invest daily in student growth and success.OLLU Saints
Saints Showdown
Spirit Week concludes Thursday with Saints Showdown in the UWAC. This student field day brings camaraderie, class pride, and shared energía into one culminating experience, reinforcing the joy and unity that define our campus culture.
More than a series of events, Spirit Week reflects the power of student leadership and the importance of creating intentional spaces for connection. Faculty, staff, and students are encouraged to participate throughout the week as we strengthen our sense of belonging and celebrate what makes OLLU distinct: tradition, pride, and familia.
As part of Spirit Week at Our Lady of the Lake University, Saints Showdown invites undergraduate students to step onto the field and be an athlete for a day — no experience required.
Hosted by SPB and held in the UWAC gym, this athlete-themed event brings classic field day competition indoors, giving students the chance to face off in tug of war, relay races, and other throwback-style games. It’s friendly rivalry, high energy, and Saints pride in motion.
More than just competition, Saints Showdown is about participation and community. Rally your classmates, reprsent your year, and enjoy an afternoon of movement, laughter, and connection. Free pizza will fuel the fun, and participants will receive custom Saints Showdown swag created specifically for this event.
At the end of the day, one grad year will raise the Champions Cup and claim campus bragging rights.
Spirit Week is about celebrating the OLLU familia, and Saints Showdown adds an athletic edge to that celebration.
Undergraduate students can sign up by grad year. Teams are forming now.
