NMSU alumnus, wife create scholarship for Hispanic students to explore law careers

https://newscenter.nmsu.edu/Articles/view/13738/nmsu-alumnus-wife-create-scholarship-for-hispanic-students-to-explore-law-careers

The José N. and Joan T. Uranga Law Endowed Scholarship is the second NMSU scholarship funded by José Uranga and his wife Joan. Both scholarships focus on increasing the number of Hispanic students who pursue career pathways currently underrepresented by Hispanic professionals.

“This is our way of giving back, but it’s not only to support students financially,” said José, a 1969 NMSU alumnus and retired environmental lawyer. “These scholarships, we hope, will incentivize students to take certain courses that will whet their appetites for careers in law or education.”

José, who practiced environmental law for 30 years, graduated from NMSU with a bachelor’s degree in government and a minor in pre-law. He earned his juris doctorate from Georgetown University Law School and a master’s degree in environmental sciences from the University of Texas at San Antonio. The eldest of seven siblings, José received financial aid from NMSU, including free housing in Garcia Hall, which helped him become the first in his family to graduate college.

“Throughout my academic journey, I never had one Hispanic teacher or professor,” José said. “That’s what inspired our first scholarship in the College of Education – to increase the number of Hispanic educators who could be role models for their Hispanic students. Our new scholarship in the Government Department came from my experience being the only Hispanic at Georgetown Law.”

During his first year at Georgetown, José approached the dean of the law school with an idea to increase the Hispanic, law student population on campus.

“I asked him to pay for me to go on three recruiting trips to colleges with large Hispanic enrollments. One to the East coast, another to the West coast and the last one to the Southwest,” José said. “And, he approved it. By the time I graduated in 1972, Georgetown Law had the highest Hispanic population among law schools east of the Mississippi. But, still today, only about four percent of all lawyers are Hispanic.”

The Uranga’s new scholarship hopes to change that statistic. Awardees are Hispanic juniors or seniors studying government, who take at least two law courses and demonstrate an interest in pursuing a law degree.

“With these scholarships, José and Joan are shaping the demographic of two critical, career pathways by creating opportunities for NMSU students to be the pioneers of increasing Hispanic representation in those fields,” said Tina Byford, interim vice president of University Advancement. “Not only do the students benefit financially to explore these careers they may not otherwise have pursued, but those industries also benefit by gaining new perspectives, voices and backgrounds to enrich their teams. We commend the Uranga’s for devoting their gifts to such a thoughtful, far-sighted mission.”