UTSA announces search advisory committee for art school director

JULY 8, 2022 — UTSA has established the search advisory committee to initiate a nationwide search for the founding director of the new school of art being created as a result of the university’s merger of the Southwest School of Art (SSA).

Organized within the College of Liberal and Fine Arts (COLFA), the school will be the administrative home for the university’s current undergraduate and graduate degrees in studio art and art history, as well as for the minor in museum studies.

The process to select the initial name of the new school now is underway; a name will be announced later this summer.

“We are incredibly grateful to these community leaders, as well as the faculty and staff, who are supporting this important process.”

“We are excited to convene the search advisory committee and identify a founding director who shares our commitment to expand visual and creative arts education and student learning,” said COLFA Dean Glenn Martínez. “Since our institutions announced the merger last summer, SSA faculty and faculty in the UTSA Department of Art and Art History have worked collaboratively to develop a new Bachelor of Fine Arts curriculum that is focused on interdisciplinarity and career-engaged artistic formation.”

Martínez added, “The new founding director will champion this collective vision, while also seeking new opportunities for fine arts expansion while preserving SSA’s tremendous legacy.”

The search advisory committee will be chaired by Lisa Montoya, vice provost for global initiatives, and Tracy Cowden, director of the UTSA Department of Music will serve as co-chair.

Committee members include the following:

• Arturo Almeida, art specialist, UTSA University Art Collection  
• Richard Armendariz, professor, UTSA Department of Art & Art History
• Mark Blizard, associate professor and director, UTSA School of Architecture & Planning
• Justin Boyd, assistant professor (formerly of Southwest School of Art)
• Stephanie Peché Canales, associate director of development (formerly of Southwest School of Art)
• Greg Elliott, professor and outgoing chair, Department of Art & Art History
• Ovidio Giberga, associate professor, Department of Art & Art History
• Victor Guerrero, sr. administrative associate, Department of Art & Art History
• Rebeca Gomez, sr. administrative associate, Honors College
• Joe Harjo, associate professor of Instruction (formerly of Southwest School of Art)
• Julie Johnson, associate professor, Department of Art & Art History
• David Vance, associate professor and director of creative writing, Department of English

Additionally, several leaders in the San Antonio arts community will join the committee as resource members:

• Elise Boyan, past chair, Board of Trustees for SSA
• Randy Cain, chair, Board of Trustees for SSA
• Kate Carey, head of education, McNay Art Museum
• Andrew Herdeg, partner, Lake|Flato Architects
• Jon Hinojosa, president and director of innovation, SAY Sí
• Ashley Mireles, education coordinator, Artpace San Antonio
• Olga Moucoilis, executive director of industry and community partnerships, Edgewood Independent School District
• Lucia Abramovich Sánchez, associate curator of Latin American Art, San Antonio Museum of Art
• Alexandra van de Kamp, executive director, Gemini Ink

“We are incredibly grateful to these community leaders, as well as the faculty and staff, who are supporting this important process,” said UTSA Provost and Senior Vice President of Academic Affairs Kimberly Andrews Espy. “SSA has played such an important role in our San Antonio community, and having community participation in this process to help identify leadership of our new school is a critical element to its future success.”

Last month, UTSA announced it had selected executive search firm Koya Partners to assist with the search. Founded in 2004, Koya has conducted over a thousand executive searches for mission-driven organizations across the U.S. and around the world.

Koya managing director Naree W.S.Viner will oversee the process with her team. To kick off the development of the position profile, the search firm will engage with community and university stakeholders to identify their aspirations and characteristics desired in the new school leader.

The search process will afford multiple opportunities to meet and interact with candidates, as well as provide input into the selection.

— Rebecca Luther