Dr. Teresa Feria

Teresa Patricia (Paty) Feria is a full professor in the Biology Department at The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV). She serves as Associate Dean for Faculty Success at the College of Sciences (COS) and as a UTRGV Provost Fellow and Office for Sustainability Fellow. She has mentored high school, undergraduate, and graduate students and new faculty at UTRGV. To create a supportive community, she created a program at UTRGV called “Juntos al Exito” - together, we succeeded – where a panel of faculty/administrators and students share their successful testimonials. Topics included a sense of belonging, family culture, education, student mentoring, and more. Her inclusive and culturally responsive mentoring strategies and activities include icebreakers, self-reflections, creating support networks, and community engagement activities. Dr. Feria received the Provost’s International Studies Award (2011) and the Excellence in Teaching Award from the College of Science and Mathematics (2012). She received a USDA Kika de la Garza Science Fellowship and is a member of Mexico’s National Researchers System (Sistema Nacional de Investigadores). In 2018, Dr. Feria received the Outstanding International Faculty Female at UTRGV Excellence Award in Community Engagement at the College and University levels and the Fred W. and Frances H. Rusteberg Fellowship. She was Chair of the Women’s Faculty Network at UTRGV from 2018-2019. In 2022, Dr. Feria co-founded the Women in Science Network at COS. She received the prestigious UT System Regent’s Outstanding Teaching Award in 2020.