2003 Distinguished Alumna -
Graciela Berlanga-Cortez

Graciela Berlanga-Cortez earned a bachelor’s degree in Spanish and English from UTA in 1981. She taught English, journalism, Spanish and English as a second language in Dallas and Grand Prairie schools while also monitoring magnet, vanguard and Montessori schools in the Dallas Independent School District. She taught ESL and developmental writing in the Dallas County Community College District and in 1995 received the Excellence in Education Award presented by Mexican American Business and Professional Women. She earned a master’s degree in library science from Texas Woman’s University in 2000 and has spent the last three years as a library media specialist in the Dallas Independent School District. She manages all aspects of the media center, which serves six magnet high schools and the academic center.