University of Houston Center for Mexican American and Latino/a Studies Awarded $1.2M to Enhance Graduate Study Programs

Houston-based CFE International LLC, a wholly owned affiliate of the Mexican state-owned electric utility Comisión Federal de Electricidad, has awarded $1.2 million to the University of Houston’s Center for Mexican American and Latino Studies (CMALS).   

The funds will go to the Lydia Mendoza Graduate Fellowship Program and be used to help recruit and retain graduate students interested in studying the experience of Mexican Americans and Latinos in the U.S. All students studying in any field are eligible for up to two years of funding. The program began recruitment Feb. 1 for the first fellowship year, 2024-2025.

“The University of Houston has long supported cross-cultural learning experiences through its status as Texas’ first Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI), as designated by the U.S. Department of Education,” said Daniel P. O’Connor, dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences. “Cultural explorations are an important part of the university experience, and we are thrilled when partners such as CFE International recognize this and support our efforts.” 

CMALS was established in 1972 as an interdisciplinary academic program encompassing the liberal arts, education and social sciences focusing on the Mexican American and broader Latino experience in the U.S. Its mission is to advance knowledge, promote critical thinking and foster the value of service to the community. This involves designing a broad spectrum of public and scholarly programs. Located within the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences, CMALS has evolved into an academic unit with several major components: teaching, research and publications, recruitment and retention, leadership training, academic advising and community service. 

As a private subsidiary of the Mexican electric company in the United States, CFE international is committed to extend its commitment to social responsibility to the communities in Houston where it operates.  

“We felt compelled to help fulfill the higher aspirations of students with a desire to pursue graduate studies at the University of Houston, known for its excellent education in a vibrant city with a sizable Mexican presence and with commercial and cultural ties to the US – Mexico bilateral relationship,” said Dr. Miguel Reyes, CEO of CFE International. 

Named for popular singer and guitarist, Lydia Mendoza, a native Houstonian, The Lydia Mendoza Graduate Fellowship Program represents an initiative to further enhance the opportunity of supporting a wide range of graduate students from different cross-cultural perspectives, including those from a Mexican American and broader Latino heritage.  

Born in Houston in 1916, Lydia Mendoza, who would come to be known as “La Cancionera de los Pobres” (the songstress of the poor) as she traveled with her family around the United States performing for largely Mexican American audiences. At the dawn of World War II, she was one of the most famous Spanish-language singers of the Texas-Mexico border region. 

Though Mendoza struggled to achieve recognition beyond Latino audiences for most of her career, she gained national prominence when she was invited by President Carter to sing at his inauguration in 1977. In 1999, at a White House ceremony, President Clinton awarded her the National Medal of Arts. 

Hispanic enrollment at four-year colleges in the U.S. has exponentially increased over the last few decades, rising from 1.5 million in 2000 to a new high of 3.8 million in 2019, according to the Pew Research Center. As of 2022 the U.S. Census Bureau counted the Hispanic population at 63.7 million, making it the nation’s largest racial or ethnic minority — 19.1% of the total population.