Mayra Olivares-Urueta

Mayra Olivares-Urueta, Ph.D., serves as vice president for student development services at Tarrant County College’s Northeast Campus in Texas. Her work as an educational administrator is framed by awareness of community cultural wealth, funds of knowledge, and critical race theories. She works to create an environment in which students feel safe, cared for, and at-opportunity (rather than at-risk). Dr. Olivares-Urueta’s research focuses on the success of Latinx students and on infusing anti-deficit narratives into higher education about all minoritized students.

Dr. Olivares-Urueta has served as a recruiter, student life coordinator, academic instructor, registrar, researcher, and executive administrator. Additionally, she has held administrative roles for research projects through the University of North Texas’s Latino Family College Access Program and nationally through the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities. Dr. Olivares-Urueta is an active member of the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators, the National Community College Hispanic Council, the American Association of Community Colleges, and the Texas Association of Chicanos in Higher Education.

Mayra holds bachelor’s degrees in European studies and Spanish and a master’s degree in human relations from the University of Oklahoma. In 2013, she earned her doctor of philosophy degree in higher education from the University of North Texas. She lives in Arlington with Alejandro, her husband of 10 years, and their daughters, Isabel (6) and Olivia (3). She enjoys spending time with her family, singing along to all the songs her daughters love, and traveling.