Professor Julian Rodriguez celebrates 15 years of shaping bilingual journalists at UT Arlington
ARLINGTON — For about 15 years, University of Texas at Arlington professor and director of the Hispanic Media Initiative, Julian Rodriguez, has been inspiring up-and-coming journalists and using a bilingual approach to teach them the ins and outs of careers in broadcast news.
Rodriguez, a native of Colombia, immigrated to the U.S. more than 20 years ago and studied Broadcast Journalism at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
A few short years after graduation, he knew his place in the journalism world was as an academic.
"There is no doubt that my background, my history, my heritage, plays an important role," Rodriguez said. "It's extremely powerful. The fact that I can switch from English a español (to Spanish) …that helps connect with my students."
The majority of Rodriguez's UT Arlington students are of Hispanic heritage. UT Arlington has a more than 30% Hispanic student population, according to Rodriguez.
"These are students that come from 'El Barrio.' They come from the Latino community. Their parents, many of them didn't finish high school," said Rodriguez.
His efforts have been recognized throughout academia and professional journalism organizations with various awards including recognition from the National Association of Hispanic Journalists and even a nomination for a national EMMY award.
Rodriguez said his greatest accomplishment is mentoring and teaching the next generation of bilingual journalists and achieving a 100% graduation and employment rate for his students since he began his efforts at UT Arlington in 2009.
Rodriguez told CBS News Texas he has a wish for his students.
"The wish is a very simple wish," said Rodriguez. "The wish is for us to have representation, and for us to truly understand who we are as Americans."
He said Hispanic and Latino demographics are still not adequately represented in main stream media and in local news. He is out to change that through his work with UT Arlington college students.
As we celebrate Hispanic Heritage month, Rodriguez added, "We have to remember our history and where we come from. If we forget that we are either bound to repeat our own mistakes or we forget the things that made us so wonderful."