Joe R. and Teresa Lozano Long

In gratitude

Joe R. and Teresa Lozano Long

Joe R. and Teresa Lozano Long, longtime supporters of UT Health San Antonio, received the Santa Rita Award, the highest honor from the UT System Board of Regents.
Photo courtesy of Austin American-Statesman

Joe R. and Teresa Lozano Long, for whom the UT Health San Antonio School of Medicine and the central campus are named, received the UT System Board of Regents highest honor—the Santa Rita Award.

The Longs, who have contributed approximately $100 million to UT Health San Antonio, UT Austin and UT Rio Grande Valley, have created numerous student scholarships, faculty chairs and professorships, and contributed programmatic funds in various disciplines, including medicine, law, business, education, pharmacy, music and art.

First presented in 1968, the Santa Rita Award shares a name with Santa Rita No. 1, the first producing oil well on university lands in West Texas. The well hit oil in 1923 and jump-started the growth of the Permanent University Fund, which has provided transformational resources for UT System and Texas A&M institutions.

Only 25 Santa Rita awards have been presented by regents over the past 50 years. The award is given to individuals or organizations who demonstrate a record of commitment to furthering the purposes and objectives of the UT System and serving as the highest example of selfless and public-spirited service.

“Joe and Terry’s love story is one that touches all of our hearts. They decided as a couple that their devotion to one another would include extending educational opportunities to others who could benefit from their successes,” said Board of Regents Chairman Sara Martinez Tucker. “Among their many generous acts is ensuring that first-generation students can attend medical school without debt and return to their communities as physicians, serving countless individuals who need their healing expertise. 

“Multiply that over the years, with the more than 200 students who have already been ‘Long Scholars’ or ‘Long Physicians’ at UT Health San Antonio, and one can easily see that the Longs will have made a difference beyond measure and will touch millions of lives over many generations to come,” Tucker added.

The medical school and campus at UT Health San Antonio are both named for the Longs in honor of their commitment of more than $61 million to build a significant future pipeline of physicians, nurses and other health care providers from South Texas. These future health care providers will in turn serve regions throughout Texas during their professional careers. The fund, which supports faculty and student endowments and other critical research needs, has since positioned UT Health San Antonio as one of the nation’s leading medical schools for graduating Hispanic physicians.

The Lozano Long Institute for Latin American Studies at UT Austin, an internationally acclaimed scholarly institute, bears Teresa Lozano Long’s name and integrates more than 30 academic departments in educational and research activities to promote a greater understanding of, and close scholarly and cultural relationships with, Latin America.

Teresa Lozano Long, the daughter of a dairy farmer, grew up in Premont, Texas. As valedictorian of her high school, she attended UT Austin, earning Bachelor of Science and Master of Education degrees. She also was the first Hispanic woman to earn a doctorate in health and physical education at UT Austin. She has served on state and national boards and commissions, including the National Endowment for the Arts, and is a Distinguished Alumna of UT Austin and a member of the Texas Women’s Hall of Fame.

Joe Long received a bachelor’s degree at what is now Tarleton State University in Stephenville, Texas, a part of the Texas A&M University System. After graduation, he met his future wife when they were both teachers in Alice, Texas. She had an interest in returning to UT Austin for a doctorate, and he wanted a law degree. They both achieved their educational goals at UT Austin, and Joe Long began his professional career as an attorney, first with the State Securities Board, then with the attorney general’s office before transitioning into private banking. He also is a Distinguished Alumnus of UT Austin and has served on and chaired many boards, including the Austin Symphony Orchestra.

“Terry and I are extremely pleased to be given this highest honor from the University of Texas System and its regents,” Joe Long said. “We hope that our giving will encourage others to do the same.”

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