1960s

Dr. Mary Ann Klein ’65 BA was awarded the rank of emerita professor of English by Quincy University. She retired in 2008 as professor of English after teaching at Quincy for 36 years.

1970s

Reinette Alecozay ’73 BA has become a full time caregiver for her 88-year-old mother. Alecozay also volunteers at San Antonio’s City Hall for City Council District 5, serves as a trustee for the Shekinah Learning Institute School Board (Radiance Academy and Shekinah Radiance Academy Public Charter Schools), serves as Area III governor for the El Dorado Homes Association, and volunteers for the Nehemiah Initiative to improve the quality of life for the community on the Westside of San Antonio.

Ed Sass ’77 BS is living in Dallas with his wife, Colleen. He has been a laboratory supervisor for 17 years, inspecting hospitals and other laboratories that provide testing for patients.

1980s

 Victoria Leland ’82 BSN is happy to announce the publishing of her book “A Gathering of Angels.” The nonfiction book is about five mothers whose premature babies died in Leland’s NICU unit. She created a support group for the five women who become “angels” to others experiencing the heartbreak of an infant’s death.

Aline Meyer Harbison ’86 BA was selected as Educator of the Year by the New Orleans Holocaust Remembrance Committee.

1990s

 James Parks ’96 BA was selected to the University Interscholastic League’s All Century Team for soccer as a forward. He played soccer at UIW in the early 1990s.

Lisa Luna

Sjogren’s Syndrome Foundation CEO Steven Taylor presents Lisa Luna with the 2009 Awareness Award.

Lisa Luna ’97 BA was awarded the 2009 Awareness Award from the Sjogren’s Syndrome Foundation. Luna is the Lifestyles editor at the Pleasanton Express, a weekly newspaper in South Texas. She received the award for her media coverage and writing about her personal experiences with Sjogren’s syndrome, an autoimmune disease similar to lupus.

Eric Alonzo ’98 MAA was named District 7-5A Coach of the Year as girl’s head soccer coach at Irving MacArthur High School. He has been a head coach for the past nine years, including his first year at his high school alma mater, W.T. White High School in Dallas, and the past eight years at Irving MacArthur. This is his third Coach of the Year award. He earned his 100th victory as a coach in March.

Diana Blank ’98 BA was inducted into the National Association of Professional Women’s (NAPW) Hall of Fame. She is the Economic Development director for the City of Kyle.

Roxanna Montes-Bazaldua ’98 BA, ’01 M.Ed. received the 2009 Trinity Prize for Excellence in Teaching, which recognizes outstanding public educators. She is a fifth-grade bilingual teacher at Woodridge Elementary School in San Antonio. The criteria included outstanding classroom performance, leadership in the school and the district, leadership in the education profession, and outstanding community service.

Jenny CarnesJenny Carnes ’99 BA was inducted into the San Antonio Women’s Hall of Fame. Carnes is the executive director of the San Antonio Local Organizing Committee (SALOC) at San Antonio Sports. The SALOC is responsible for hosting the NCAA Final Four®, which most recently hosted the Women’s Final Four® in April and the Men’s Final Four® in 2008. She was also the first woman to be inducted into the UIW Sports Hall of Fame. She actively served on the Alumni Association’s board of directors for three years and stays involved with the Alumni Association’s programs and initiatives.

2000s

Jennifer Lagundino ’02 BA was recently accepted to the Yale School of Drama MFA program in Theatre Management. She begins the three-year program in the fall.

Jose M. Lozano ’05 MAA was elected state representative for District 43 in March. Lozano owns two Wing Stops in the Corpus Christi area, with a third restaurant scheduled to open in September.

alumniStephanie Hall ’09 BA and Ashley Lara ’10 BA, both employees of the UIW Office of Admissions, jump for joy at the recent alumni mixer, hosted at The Ticket Sports Grill in Universal City. Later in the evening, the alumnae joined the rest of the UIW alumni kickball team for their first game of the season.

Yvette Reyna ’03 BA was recently named the executive director of the Judson Education Foundation and business partnerships coordinator for the Judson Independent School District.  Previously, she worked as the director of sales promotions and weekend movie host for KABB & KMYS.

Betty Lou Guckian ’06 MA wrote an article titled “Daddy suffered in silence – Are you next?” about elder abuse. It was published recently on a national elder advocacy website.

Samantha Mangum ’06 BA and Andre Prieto ’07 BA are attempting to climb the seven summits of the world. So far, they have successfully climbed Mount Kilimanjaro in Africa, with plans to climb Mount Kosciuszko in Australia and Mount Aconcagua, the world’s second highest summit, by the end of the summer.  In 2007, Mangum rode her bicycle across the country and blogged on the Cardinal’s Nest during her journey. Both played tennis at Incarnate Word.

Belinda Santos ’07 BA was accepted into the master’s program for dance at Texas Woman’s University for the fall semester. She plans to pursue research in dance therapy and the kinesthetic approaches to working with adolescents and adults suffering from mental illnesses.

Rebecca Jacobs ’08 BA accepted the position of social network marketing specialist for MoveforFREE.com.

Archbishop José Gomez ’09 L.H.D. (Hon.) has been named Co-adjutor Archbishop of Los Angeles, the largest diocese in the United States.

Dr. Sara Jackson ’09 Ph.D. was recently inducted into the San Antonio Hall of Fame. Jackson is an assistant professor of international business at UIW. She was also recently elected president of NASBITE International, a professional organization for the global business community.

Jesse Munoz ’09 BA was accepted into the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising in San Francisco. When he completes the program, he will have a professional designation degree in visual communications.

Christina Garcia ’09 BBA was named Conexión’s “Hottest Latina 2010.” She is working toward her teacher’s certification and is working full time at a charter school instructing writing and social studies.