The University of Guadalajara has presented the Galardón Honorífico Universitario Enrique Díaz de León award to five graduates who have made outstanding contributions to UDG, their respective communities or Mexico. Among the recipients was Sara Poot Herrera, a professor at the University of California at Santa Barbara, marking the first time that the award has been given to an alumnus living outside Mexico.

At a ceremony held at the Enrique Díaz de León auditorium on the UDG campus, Rector Marco Antonio Cortés Guardado presented a commemorative medal and diploma to Óscar Aguirre Jáuregui, José Manuel Jurado Parres, Jaime Mondragón Espinoza, Héctor Raúl Pérez Gómez and Poot Herrera.

Poot’s nomination was the result of an outreach initiative organized by the UDG Alumni Office and the University of Guadalajara at Los Angeles which involved asking residents of the Los Angeles community to nominate distinguished UDG alumni living in LA for the 2009 award.

The Galardón Honorífico Universitario Enrique Díaz de León is the most prestigious alumni recognition bestowed by the University of Guadalajara. It honors excellence in teaching, academics and other good work achieved by the university’s former students.

Candidates for the award can be graduates of any USG degree program who have distinguished themselves by making extraordinary contributions in the areas science, technology, humanities, the arts, education or community service programs or projects that the university offers through its academic departments.

Nominations must be submitted by third parties such as professional associations, alumni associations or public/private institutions. These most recent winners were selected from a field of 30 qualified candidates.

At the awards ceremony, Adalberto Ortega, Secretary of the UDG Foundation, which organizes the competition, said that the academic career of these five alumni attests to the greatness of UDG, which is now commemorating its bicentennial.

The first winner to be announced was Óscar Aguirre Jáuregui, who has worked for more than 45 years in the field of pediatric surgery. He is a member of the Association of Pediatricians of Jalisco and of the Mexican Council of Pediatric Surgery.

Another winner was José Manuel Jurado Parres, a mechanical engineer and UDG lecturer in education. A university professor since 1966, he founded La Gaceta Universitaria, as well as the specialized UDG media archive, which has been digitized since 2004. He is presently director of UDG's Preparatoria 5 high school, a position which he has occupied for more than 20 years.

Dr. Jaime Mondragón Espinoza, a dental surgeon with a 37-year professional career, was also awarded. He is known for his excellent work in the areas of teaching, clinical dentistry, administration and extension.

Poot Herrera was the only female recipient of the 2009 award. She is a graduate of the University of Guadalajara philosophy department and holder of a PhD in Hispanic Literature from the Colegio de México. Since 1987, she has been professor at the University of California at Santa Barbara and is now a full-time faculty member at that institution.

Appearing as special guest speaker at the ceremony was Héctor Raúl Pérez Gómez, a specialist in infectology. Formerly the director of the Hospital Civil in Guadalajara, he is currently Rector of the UDG Health Sciences Center.

He said being a recipient of this award implies taking on a commitment to ensure the continuance of the University’s important outreach, extension and academic work as well as a challenge to maintain its ranking as one of the most competitive institutions of its kind at the national and international levels.

For his part, UDG General Rector Marco Antonio Cortés Guardado indicated that the accomplishments of the winners extol the image of UDG both within the university community as well as abroad.

See photo gallery