Dr. Karina Salazar named 2022 Erasmus Circle Fellow

We are thrilled to announce that Dr. Karina Salazar is our 2022 Erasmus Circle Fellow. Erasmus Circle Fellows are faculty leaders who have demonstrated excellence in their fields. They are nominated by their department heads and former Erasmus Circle Fellows and are selected by the College of Education National Advisory Board. The title of Erasmus Circle Fellow is one of the highest honors bestowed upon its faculty by the College of Education. Dr. Salazar regularly inspires her students and colleagues, and she is very deserving of this honor.

Dr. Salazar’s work embodies the best and highest values of the College of Education, including a deep commitment to equity and diversity that makes a direct and powerful impact in education scholarship, national practices, and local Tucson schools. Her work interrogates unequal access to college in uncharted ways, examining how university recruitment tactics are shaped by socioeconomics and race, and the implications of these decisions. Her work has appeared in the New York Times and the Washington Post. Simply put, Dr. Salazar’s scholarship is groundbreaking and truly exceptional, with potential to shift recruiting and admissions practices at higher education institutions across the country.

Dr. Salazar was raised in South Tucson, lives in South Tucson, and continues to give back to her home community in transformative ways. Most notably, Dr. Salazar’s scholarship directly resulted in a joint initiative between Sunnyside Unified School District and the University of Arizona, leading to a transformative growth in applicants and admissions from SUSD’s two high schools, where previously the University had not been recruiting. Dr. Salazar’s scholarship, as well as her extraordinary networks in SUSD, have led to SUSD’s two high schools to now ranking first and second in the nation for high schools with the most admissions to U of A.

She is an immensely talented educator, scholar, and researcher. We are proud to recognize Dr. Salazar as our 2022 Erasmus Circle Fellow, and thank her for her immense contributions to our College, our field, and our community. Congratulations Dr. Salazar!