“Dr. H” are words recognized by most Hispanic/Latin@ students as easily as the name of a longtime friend. I can say with confidence that students, faculty, and staff who have been part of Ohio State in the last 10 to 15 years quickly relate these words with an iconic figure in the Hispanic/Latin@ community at Ohio State, Dr. Raúl Herrera.
Dr. Raúl Herrera, a Mexico City native, retired this past August after almost 25 years spent working at The Ohio State University. For many of us who had the opportunity to share some of our time with him, his name will always be associated to his kind smile, a cordial estudien muchachos, his voice, and the music from his guitar. His advice, his words of encouragement, and even his numerous emails that sometimes flooded our inboxes will be missed.
Herrera first arrived to Ohio State as a Visiting Professor and later became an Assistant Professor in the Engineering Graphics Department in 1985. He finally was appointed Associate Professor in October 1991. During his time at Ohio State, Herrera received many awards including the Charles MacQuigg Outstanding Teaching Award by the Students of Engineering in 1998, the Center for Teaching Excellence Award for fostering Multicultural Teaching in 1992, the Distinguished Diversity Enhancement Award in 2001 and the Alfred J. Wright Outstanding Student Organization Faculty Advisor Award in 1992.
Herrera obtained his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Chemical Engineering from the National Polytechnic Institute (IPN) in Mexico City and later obtained his doctor’s degree from the University of Melbourne in Australia.
Although his primary activity was teaching in the Engineering Graphics Department, he is more known to students and the Latin@ community as the adviser of several student organizations including SHPE, HGO, Canto Latino, FIAT, Alpha Psi Lambda, and TODOS. In this role, he shared his experiences and provided support to groups and to individual students. But Dr. H will be remembered for his particular way to greet any of his amigos, always shaking a hand, a tap on the shoulder, always personable and always friendly, even when he did not remember the name of the student (he had so many to remember throughout his career, after all).
Following are the words of people who have known Dr. Raúl Herrera:
“Ya sea que me lo encontrara caminando por el campus, en las oficinas o en los ensayos de Canto Latino, Doctor Raúl siempre emitía mucha alegría. Se le agradece que haya sido el organizador de Canto Latino por tantos años, ya que su esfuerzo formó un grupo de amigos que se reune a recordar nuestra música en medio de todo el estudio en OSU. Los ensayos de Canto Latino no serán los mismo sin Doctor Raúl, y nos va a hacer falta quien este diciendo: “¡Muchachos hay que ensayar!” Mil gracias por su apoyo y amistad.”
— Maria Aguilera, Canto Latino, Secretary
“Dr. Herrera has provided encouragement, entertainment, and resources for our young organization. With his accumulated knowledge and experiences of campus over the years, along with his advice that has been passed down to us, we are pointed toward a bright future.
— Nick Brown
President, Fuerza e Integridad a Todos (FIAT)
“I do not know any Hispanic faculty or staff that has had a greater positive influence on students at Ohio State than Raúl Herrera. He has helped start out most of the Hispanic student organizations at Ohio State and has volunteered as faculty advisor for them. As a member of HOC, he has been an outstanding contributor; he is always willing to work on anything in benefit of Hispanic faculty, staff, or students. He is an inspiration to the rest of us.”
— Dr. José Castro, HOC, Chair
“Through his happiness, enthusiasm, and positive attitude, Dr. Raúl Herrera has been a mentor to me in all aspects of life; engineering, music, well being, and my overall objectives of life.”
— Jonathan Carmona, Canto Latino, Member
“Many thanks to Prof. Raúl Herrera who was a major influence in the formation of Folclor Hispano as a student organization at Ohio State in 1997. From discussions on the idea of such a group, to working together in the earlier years as co-advisers, and then to relying on him as a strong supporter and collaborator, I have seen his commitment to create opportunities for people to learn about different cultures and to help people connect within the University and with the community. We are just one of the many student organizations that is indebted to Dr. Herrera for his kindness, time, and effort. Best wishes.”
— Arleen Pineda, Folclor Hispano, Co-adviser
“Dr. H has been a great mentor to everyone in SHPE. He has always been there to help students with academic as well as personal problems. The Latino community at OSU will not be the same without him. He will be greatly missed.”
— Luis Carbajal, former SHPE President
Gracias Dr. Herrera and los mejores deseos in your future endeavors!
|
