CAMDEN (Rutgers) September 11, 2007 — Gloria Bonilla-Santiago, the Board of Governors Distinguished Service Professor of Urban Studies at Rutgers University—Camden, has been named the recipient of the 2007 National Mujer Award from the National Hispana Leadership Institute.

The Mujer Awards annually honor the sustained lifetime achievements of Hispanic women who have made significant contributions to the empowerment and well-being of the Hispanic community.

Bonilla-Santiago will receive the award as a National Honoree during a special ceremony in Denver on Nov. 9. Actress/activist Rosario Dawson will receive the 2007 Mujer Award as a Chair Honoree, while Mary DeFerreire, president and CEO of International Multicultural Psychological Services in Texas, will receive the 2007 Mujer Award as a Regional Honoree.

According to NHLI president Marissa Rivera-Albert, the Rutgers-Camden scholar and advocate was selected on the basis of her “exceptional record in education, leadership, and public service,” as well as her “passion for helping (the) community.”

Bonilla-Santiago is the founder of the LEAP (Leadership, Education And Partnership) Academy University Charter School in Camden. Founded in 1997 as one of New Jersey’s very first charter schools, the LEAP Academy program enrolls more than 720 students in grades pre-K through 12. The program consistently earns national recognition for its curriculum and its educational model that actively engages families in the school and the education of its children. Every graduate of the LEAP Academy University High School has been accepted into college or professional school.

Her initiatives seek to address pressing societal needs. In response to a growing demand for qualified public school leadership across New Jersey, Bonilla-Santiago developed an Education Policy and Leadership curriculum within the Rutgers-Camden master of public policy program, which prepares teachers to become effective principals and superintendents. She also launched the Parents Academy for School Reform, which helps Camden parents become more effective advocates for their children’s education, and the Teacher Development and Performance Institute, which shares best practices in education among urban teachers.

Bonilla-Santiago secured $3 million in external support to help create the Rutgers Early Learning Research Academy, which will apply Rutgers scholarly research toward the societal and educational issues challenging successful childhood learning, while also serving the children and families of Camden.

Through the Rutgers-Camden Center for Strategic Urban Community Leadership, founded by Bonilla-Santiago in 1992, Rutgers provides specialized leadership training designed to empower individuals across a wide variety of backgrounds. Among these initiatives are the Latino Fellows Public Policy Leadership Institute, which encourages Latino college students to pursue public policy positions in the State of New Jersey, and the South Jersey Regional Leadership Institute.

She has presented her research and innovations at numerous national and international conferences and events. In 1995, Bonilla-Santiago served as a U.S. delegate to Fourth World Conference on Women, held in Beijing-Huairou, China.

The author of the books “Hispanic Women Leaders Breaking Ground and Barriers: Developing Effective Leadership” (Marin Publications, 1992) and “Organizing Puerto Rican Migrant Farmworkers: The Experience of Puerto Ricans in New Jersey” (Peter Lang Publishing, 1988), Bonilla-Santiago teaches in the master of public policy program at the Camden campus of Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey.

She is the recipient of numerous awards, including the American Association for Higher Education’s Outstanding Latina Faculty in Higher Education Award; the Martin Luther King Jr. Freedom Medal from the Camden County Board of Freeholders; the Good Neighbor Award from the American Red Cross (Camden County chapter); and a New Jersey Department of Community Affairs award for contributions to the development of Latino/Latina leaders in the State of New Jersey.

Bonilla-Santiago received her bachelor’s degree in political science from Glassboro State College (now Rowan University) in 1976. She then earned her master of social work degree from Rutgers in 1978, and attended the City University of New York, where she was awarded her master’s degree in philosophy and her doctoral degree in social work, both in 1986.

She resides in Voorhees.

The National Hispana Leadership Institute is in its 20th year as the premier program for the development of Hispanic women leaders. Based in Arlington, Va., the non-profit organization prepares Latinas for positions of national influence, public policy impact, and the advancement of the Hispanic community.