2017 Keynote Speakers
Day One on April 18 at 9:25am in El Gran Salon, Brownsville
Dr. Teresa Patricia Feria
A native of Mexico City, Dr. Feria joined the UTPA Biology Department as an Assistant Professor in 2008. She earned both her B.S. in Biology with honors (1997) and an M.S. in Animal Biology (2001) from The National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM). She holds a doctoral degree in Biology at the University of Missouri-St. Louis (2007) and two post-doctoral appointments (Missouri Botanical Garden-Center for Conservation and Sustainable Development and UNAM, Mexico). Dr. Feria's research focuses on understanding present and future (under climate change scenarios) distribution of living organisms using Geographical Information System (GIS) technologies and Species Distribution Models. Her lines of research are related to endangered, invasive, and vector-borne disease species. In additional to her teaching duties, Dr. Feria is the recipient of 19 grants since she accepted her appointment at our university to develop research: 6 as PI, 6 as Co-PI, 3 as collaborator, 3 as co-manager and 1 as senior personnel. She received a USDA grant in 2015 to support undergraduate studies in developing research. Her published works include 22 research papers and 3 book chapters as the main or corresponding author. Dr. Feria has delivered more than 30 oral and poster presentations in national and international scientific conferences in addition to general audiences as part of outreach programs. She actively mentors high-school, undergraduate, master and PhD students and seeks funding opportunities to continue her mentorship. Recently, she received an USDA grant that will support 30 students developing research on food security and climate change. She is a mentor for the RISE, HHMI, BRIDGE, LSAMP-NSF programs, and C-STEM center. In response to her continuous support, her students are recognized for outstanding poster presentations at local, state, and national scientific conferences. One of Dr. Feria's students has recently obtained a very competitive NSF- fellowship to start his PhD program at the University of California San Francisco. She has participated in the Mothers-Daughters at UTPA program as keynote speaker. Dr. Feria's expertise has earned her positions to review grant-proposals for the Texas Academy of Science and National Science Foundation, Ornithological Council y Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnologia en Mexico and has served as a reviewer for 18 peer-reviewed journals.
Day Two on April 19 at 9:25am in Student Union Theatre, Edinburg
Dr. Ming-Tsan Pierre Lu
Dr. Ming-Tsan “Pierre” Lu is a celebrated UTRGV Assistant Professor, having authored extensive publications on educational practices and receiving the NSF Grand Award. His research covers a broad range of topics including investigations of how instructors can improve educational techniques for their students. He has examined online learning perceptions, language learning and processing, and how these influences affect student outcomes. Dr. Lu comes to UTRGV with an interdisciplinary educational background. He received his Ph.D. in Educational Psychology/ Cognitive Studies in Education from Columbia University, after earning his Master of Education in Human Development and Psychology from Harvard University and B.S. in Rural Sociology from National Taiwan University. He is a well-loved instructor, facilitating engaged learning and directed–research experiences.