UTSA President Taylor Eighmy announced today the appointment of Chief of Staff Carlos Martinez to the newly established position of Senior Vice President for Institutional Strategic Planning, Compliance Risk Management, and Office Operations & Chief of Staff. Martinez has nearly 20 years of experience in senior leadership positions in Texas higher education and most recently served as chief of staff at The University of Texas at Austin before joining UTSA in September 2020.
As chief of staff, Martinez has been responsible for directing all administrative and operational activities for the Office of the President, including administration and cabinet coordination, events, and strategic communications. He also assists with the university’s community and governmental relations initiatives, drawing on his expertise as a senior government relations strategist at The University of Texas System and UT Austin.
“I am…excited to have the opportunity to contribute to the impactful work that is taking place at all levels within UTSA.”
As senior vice president, Martinez will also oversee institutional strategic planning, including strategic initiatives and major project management for presidential and institutional priorities, and institutional compliance risk management, encompassing the university’s integrated compliance, audit, legal and risk management functions.
“Carlos brings a wealth of experience in higher education leadership,” said Eighmy. “He has been a valued member of the Senior Leadership Team and these additional duties as senior vice president reflect both his skill and his passion in accelerating the transformational change taking place at UTSA.”
The university’s 2028 strategic plan, A Vision for UTSA, outlines a pathway to become a model for student success, a great public research university, and an exemplar for strategic growth and innovative excellence.
“UTSA is on an incredible trajectory to advance research excellence, student success and economic prosperity for San Antonio,” said Martinez. “I am deeply grateful and excited to have the opportunity to contribute to the impactful work that is taking place at all levels within UTSA.”
Martinez began his career in higher education with The University of Texas System in 2002, when he represented UT System academic institutions before the Texas Legislature and the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board. He advised and counseled senior UT System leaders on legislative matters and helped UT System academic institutions develop strategic approaches to strengthen legislative and state leadership relationships.
In 2010 he joined UT Austin, where he served as associate vice president for governmental relations for nearly six years. In his role as chief of staff at UT Austin he provided senior counsel on many complex administrative and operational matters, including strategy implementation and policy development for the president.
Martinez holds a B.A. in philosophy and an M.S. in public administration from St. Mary’s University in San Antonio. He earned his J.D. at The University of Texas at Austin’s School of Law.
He is a member of the State Bar of Texas and the National Association of College and University Attorneys.
