Contact: Monty Jones, (512) 499-4363

Date: September 16, 1999

UT System News Release

New Assistant Vice Chancellor to Coordinate U.T. Collaborations with Public Schools

AUSTIN – Felipe Alanis, a deputy commissioner at the Texas Education Agency, will coordinate university and public school collaborative programs as a new assistant vice chancellor for academic affairs in the University of Texas System.

Alanis will be in charge of an expanded initiative that the U.T. System is undertaking to coordinate and strengthen its role in the preparation of teachers, in education research, and in other activities that support public education.

"We are very fortunate that Dr. Alanis has agreed to carry out this critically important role for the U.T. System and its institutions across the state," said Chancellor William H. Cunningham. "He has the depth of experience and understanding necessary for continuing and strengthening relationships between U.T. institutions and the public schools."

Ed Sharpe, executive vice chancellor for academic affairs, said: "Dr. Alanis is well known in the Texas education community for his superb leadership skills and his extensive knowledge of education issues at all levels. He will be a very valuable asset to the U.T. System as we seek to enhance the partnerships between U.T. institutions and the state’s elementary and secondary schools."

U.T. institutions are involved in more than 400 collaborative programs with public schools, with annual spending of some $50 million. The expanding initiative seeks to align and strengthen those programs and create new ones.

Alanis’ duties will include the encouragement of productive partnerships with government agencies, professional associations, school districts, and school support groups. He will help develop programs that lead to improved performance of U.T. institutions in the training of teachers, administrators, and other school professionals, and he will seek support for such programs from private and public sources.

He also will help promote university scholarship and research addressing public education policy issues and will strengthen communication between university scholars and those who develop and implement school policy.

Alanis has been deputy commissioner for programs and instruction at the Texas Education Agency since 1995. He will continue in an advisory role to newly appointed Texas Commissioner of Education James E. Nelson for an indefinite time.

He was a teacher and administrator in Texas public schools from 1970 to 1995. He began his career in 1970 as a teacher in the Pharr-San Juan-Alamo school district, where from 1973 to 1987 he was an assistant principal and a principal.

From 1987 to 1989, while a graduate student at U.T. Austin, he was a consultant and cooperative superintendency fellow at the Texas Association of School Boards. He then worked in the Ector County school district, as executive director for secondary education from 1989 to 1991 and as deputy superintendent from 1991 to 1994.

Alanis served as superintendent of the San Benito school district from 1994 to 1995.

He holds a Ph.D. in educational administration from U.T. Austin and two degrees from U.T. Pan American, a master’s degree in supervision/education administration and a bachelor’s degree in political science, government, and history.