Last modified: Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Carlos J. Ovando to receive Indiana University's Distinguished Latino Alumni Award
Scholarships also to be presented to three IU students
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Oct. 13, 2010
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- Carlos J. Ovando of Tempe, Ariz., has been named the 2010 recipient of the Distinguished Latino Alumni Award by the Latino Alumni Association, an affiliate group of the Indiana University Alumni Association.
The award recognizes IU Latino alumni for their outstanding professional achievements and community service.
"Dr. Ovando exemplifies the potential of what IU graduates can achieve," says Gavin Mariano, president of the Latino Alumni Association. "His commitment to education and support for the Latino community, among other factors, made him a perfect fit for what the Distinguished Latino Alumni Award stands for."
Ovando will receive the honor at the Latino Alumni Association Awards Dinner, on Oct. 23 (Saturday) at the DeVault Alumni Center, 1000 E. 17th St., at IU Bloomington. The event begins at 5:30 p.m. and is open to the public. The cost to attend is $15 for IUAA members, $20 for nonmembers, and $5 for students. A discount is available to those who register online by Oct. 20 at https://alumni.indiana.edu/eventforms/latinoaa/.
Ovando received a Ph.D. in curriculum, instruction and international comparative education in 1975, a master's degree in Latin American studies and political science in 1973, and a master of arts in teaching in Spanish in 1969, all from IU. He currently is a professor of curriculum, instruction, educational leadership and policy studies at Arizona State University.
Before joining the faculty at Arizona State, he served as chair of the Department of Curriculum and Instruction at IU Bloomington, where he was also the director of the Bilingual Education Program. In addition, Ovando has taught at Oregon State University, University of Alaska and the University of Southern California.
A naturalized citizen of the United States, Ovando's research focuses on factors that contribute to the academic achievement of language minority and ethnically diverse students -- a topic he knows firsthand, having emigrated from Nicaragua as a preteen.
He's currently involved in researching the impact of globalization on education reform in 19 nations in Latin and North America, Europe, Africa and Asia. In 2006, he served as a consultant in a cooperative initiative between Mexico and the U.S. to promote the teaching of English in Mexican public schools.
Ovando has received two Teaching Excellence Recognition Awards from the IU School of Education, is widely published, serves on a number of editorial boards, and has served on the selection committee for the Fulbright Teacher Exchange Program.
Scholarships also to be presented
At the awards dinner, recipients of the 2010 Latino Alumni Association Undergraduate Scholarship also will be recognized. All of the recipients attend IU Bloomington. This year's recipients are:
- Maria Duran, of East Chicago, Ind., a junior majoring in tourism management;
- Jorge Lopez, of Hammond, Ind., a junior majoring in secondary education; and
- Alicia Nieves, of East Chicago, Ind., a sophomore majoring in both human migration studies and political science.
Each student will receive a $500 scholarship. The scholarship rewards and recognizes academically prepared students who are involved in their communities and exhibit leadership qualities benefiting the IU Latino community and who work to foster an appreciation of the Latino experience in the United States.
The Latino Alumni Association serves to stimulate and foster an environment of positive interaction between IU, the IU Alumni Association and Latino alumni community. For more information, visit https://alumni.indiana.edu/latinoaa/.
The IU Alumni Association is dedicated to serving the university and its diverse alumni, students and friends. As one of the nation's largest alumni organizations, serving more than 540,000 graduates worldwide, the IUAA provides many programs and services to its members, nonmember alumni, and the university. For information, visit www.alumni.indiana.edu or call 800-824-3044.
