Victor B. Sáenz, Ph.D., is Associate Dean for Student Success, Community Engagement, and Administration and the L.D. Haskew Centennial Professor in Public School Administration at The University of Texas at Austin’s College of Education. With more than 20 years of experience in higher education, Dr. Sáenz previously served for six years as Chair of the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy, his academic home, where he led efforts to strengthen faculty development, expand graduate programs, and elevate the department’s national profile. He also holds faculty affiliations with the LBJ School of Public Affairs, the Center for Mexican American Studies, the Irma Rangel Public Policy Institute, and UCLA’s Higher Education Research Institute.
As Associate Dean, Dr. Sáenz oversees a broad portfolio encompassing undergraduate student success, academic advising, career engagement, and community partnerships. His leadership also includes executive oversight of three public school districts housed within the College of Education, where he is helping strengthen organizational alignment and expand educational opportunities across PK–12 and postsecondary systems.
A nationally recognized scholar of student success, mentoring, and education policy, Dr. Sáenz co-founded Project MALES (Mentoring, Academics, Leadership, and Educational Scholarship), an award-winning initiative that integrates research and mentoring to advance educational opportunities for Latino boys and young men. His scholarship includes three books and more than 70 publications, with over 9,000 citations, and has contributed significantly to national conversations on educational equity and student success. He has presented his research at the White House, the National Press Club, and Capitol Hill and regularly collaborates with policymakers, foundations, and educational leaders nationwide. He is currently co-authoring a book with Harvard Education Press, anticipated in 2027, that synthesizes more than 15 years of his research.
Dr. Sáenz has received numerous national and institutional honors recognizing his contributions to scholarship, mentoring, teaching, and academic leadership. In 2026, he was named a Fellow of the Association for the Study of Higher Education (ASHE), among the field’s highest professional distinctions. He previously received the ASHE Mentoring Award (2022) in recognition of his sustained commitment to mentoring graduate students and early-career scholars. He has also received the University Faculty Award from the American Association of Hispanics in Higher Education (2026) and the Texas Association of Chicanos in Higher Education (2022), the Iverson Award for Teaching Innovation from UT Austin’s First-Year Experience Office (2024), and the Distinguished Alumni Award from the National Hispanic Institute (2013).
Beyond his academic contributions, Dr. Sáenz has been recognized for his civic leadership and community engagement. His honors include the Community Service Leadership Award from HABLA Austin (2023), the Austin Fab Five Award from Seedling Mentoring (2021), the Somos Austin Award from the Austin Community Foundation (2019), the Corazón Award from Con Mi Madre (2013), and the Education Advocate Award from the Greater Austin Black Chamber of Commerce. He served on the Board of Directors of the Texas Lyceum from 2020 to 2025 and was selected as an inaugural Fellow of the HACU Presidential Leadership Academy (2019). He has also served on the Ann Richards School Foundation Board and currently serves on the Austin PBS Board of Directors.
A two-time Texas Ex, Dr. Sáenz earned his bachelor’s degree in mathematics (1996) and master’s degree in public affairs (1999) from UT Austin before completing his Ph.D. in Higher Education and Organizational Change at UCLA (2005). He was born and raised in the Rio Grande Valley of South Texas, an experience that continues to inform his commitment to expanding educational opportunity and strengthening communities through public education.
Ph.D.
in Education, University of California, Los Angeles, 2005
M.A.
in Education, University of California, Los Angeles, 2002
M.P.A.
in Public Affairs, The University of Texas at Austin, 1999
B.A.
in Mathematics, The University of Texas at Austin, 1996
Leads the Project MALES (Mentoring, Academics, Leadership, Educational Scholarship) initiative focused on Latino males in education; seeks to advance research-informed policy solutions that enhance educational outcomes for students in secondary and post-secondary education.
Board Member,
Austin PBS (2022 - 2029)
Board Chair,
American Association of Hispanics in Higher Education (2021 - 2023)
Director,
Texas Lyceum (2020 - 2025)
Board Member,
Executive Committee, Ann Richards School Foundation (2019 - 2022)
Board Member,
American Association of Hispanics in Higher Education (2016 - 2021)
Board Member,
University of Texas Elementary School Management Board (2016 - 2022)
Board Member,
Association for the Study of Higher Education (ASHE) (2015 - 2017)
Board Member,
National Resource Center for the First Year Experience (2014 - 2018)
Board Member,
Texas Puente Project (Catch the Next) (2014 - 2017)
Secretary,
Division J, American Educational Research Association, Division J (2013 - 2015)
Board Member,
Hispanic Scholarship Consortium (2013 - 2017)
Member,
Editorial Board, Journal of Diversity in Higher Education (2012 - 2014)
Member,
Association for the Study of Higher Education
Member,
American Association of Hispanics in Higher Education
Rodriguez, S., Massey, K. & Saenz, V. B. (2017). Engaging Latino men in community colleges: The role of student-faculty interactions. Journal of Applied Research in the Community College.
Hatch, D. K., Garcia, C. E. & Saenz, V. B. (2017). Latino men in two-year public colleges: State-level enrollment changes and trends over the last decade. Journal of Applied Research in the Community College.
Ozuna, T., Saenz, V. B., Ballysingh, T. & Yamamura, E. (2016). Increasing Latina/o student success. Examining culturally responsive college readiness in the Rio Grande Valley of South Texas.. Journal of School Leadership, 26(154-182).
Saenz, V. B. (2016). The Latino agenda is the national agenda. Chronicle of Higher Education.
Saenz, V. B., Mayo, J., Miller, R. & Rodriguez, S. (2015). (Re)defining masculinity through peer interactions: Latino men in Texas community colleges.. Journal of Student Affairs Research and Practice, 52(2), 1-12.
Saenz, V. B., Ponjuan, L., Segovia Jr., J. & Del Real Viramontes, J. (2015). Developing a Latino mentoring program: Project MALES (Mentoring to Achieve Latino Educational Success). New Directions for Higher Education, Mentoring as Transformative Practice: Supporting Student and Faculty Diversity.
Santos, J. L. & Saenz, V. B. (2014). In the eye of the perfect storm: The convergence of policy and Latina/o trends in access and financial concerns, 1975-2008.. Educational Policy, 28, 393-424.
Saenz, V., Bukoski, B., Lu, C. & Rodriguez, S. (2013). Latino males in Texas community colleges: A phenomenological study of masculinity constructs and their effect on college experiences.. Journal of African American Males in Education.
Reddick, R. & Saenz, V. (2012). Coming home: Hermanos académicos reflect on paths and present realities as professors at their alma maters.. Harvard Educational Review, 82(3), 353-380.
Saenz, V., Hatch, D., Bukoski, B., Kim, S., Lee, K. & Valdez, P. (2011). Community college student engagement patterns: A typology revealed through exploratory cluster analysis.. Community College Review, 39(3), 325-267.
Saenz, V. & Wasielewski, M. (2011). Natural advantages? Texas higher education funding and financial aid.. Enrollment Management Journal.
Saenz, V. (2010). Breaking the segregation cycle: Examining students’ pre-college racial environments and college experiences.. Review of Higher Education, 34, 1-37.
Saenz, V., Ngai, H. & Hurtado, S. (2007). Factors influencing positive interactions across race for African-American, Asian-American, Latino, and White college students.. Research in Higher Education, 48, 1-38.
Sylvia Hurtado University Faculty Award
- Association for the Study of Higher Education (2026)
ASHE Fellow
- Association for the Study of Higher Education (2026)
Iverson Award for Teaching Innovation (UGS course)
- First Year Experience, UT-Austin (2024)
Community Service Leadership Award
- HABLA Austin (2023)
University Faculty Award
- Texas Association of Chicanos in Higher Education (TACHE) (2022 - 2022)
Mentoring Award
- Association for the Study of Higher Education (2022 - 2022)
Austin Fab Five
- Seedling Mentor Program (2021)
Hispanic Service Award
- Austin Independent School District (2019)
Somos Austin Award
- Austin Community Foundation (2019)
Research Award in Elementary, Secondary, or Postsecondary Education
- AERA Hispanic Research Issues SIG (2018)
A.M. Aikin Regents Chair in Junior & Community College Education Leadership
- UT-Austin College of Education (2015 - 2016)
Distinguished Alumnus Award
- National Hispanic Institute (2013)
Corazon Award
- The University of Texas at Austin, Con Mi Madre (2013)
Sid W. Richardson Regents Chair in Community College Leadership
- UT-Austin College of Education (2013 - 2020)
"Top 25 to Watch" Diverse Leaders in Higher Education
- Diverse Magazine (2009)
Faculty Fellow
- American Association of Hispanics in Higher Education (2009)
Pre-doctoral Fellowship, UCLA
- Spencer Foundation (2001 - 2004)
