Frank O. Sotomayor collection

UA Alum and Tucson High School Class of 1962 graduate, Frank Sotomayor is a Pulitzer Prize winning journalist for the .

Sotomayor grew up in Barrio Hollywood and attended Davis Elementary and John Spring Junior High prior to attending Tucson High School. At Tucson High, he worked on the and served as a sports editor. During his senior year, he worked as a sports correspondent for the while continuing his work with the .

During his time at the University of Arizona, Mr. Sotomayor worked for the as a reporter and from 1965-66 was the Editor in Chief, during the last year that the paper was linked to the journalism department. He also received the Donald Still Award for service to the . Upon graduation, he received a degree in journalism and was named outstanding male graduate of the Class of 1966. In 1966, Sotomayor received the Robert Nugent Award. He was inducted into the in 1971.

Sotomayor earned a fellowship to Stanford University and received a master’s in communication in 1967. During his time at Stanford, he worked as a reporter and copy editor at the . In August 1968 he married Meri Finnerty Sotomayor, a 1967 graduate of the UA journalism program. From 1985-86, he worked closely with the Harvard University upon winning the Neiman Fellowship. Sotomayor then did a tour with the Army where he was the editor and a reporter with the . Upon his return in 1970, he began working with the .

In 1974, Sotomayor and his wife Meri Finnerty co-authored (“For the Children: Improving Education for Mexican Americans”), a report about education for Mexican-Americans. The title was published by the US Commission for Civil Rights.

Sotomayor co-founded the California Chicano News Media Association (CCNMA) in 1976. The CCNMA is a non-profit, professional organization that promotes diversity in news media by providing encouragement, scholarships, and educational programs for Latinos pursuing careers in journalism. The group provides education and financial assistance, helps with job placement for journalism students, offers professional training, and monitors coverage of communities of color to ensure it is accurate and fair.

One year later in 1977, Sotomayor co-founded the Robert C. Maynard Institute for Journalism Education, which promotes diversity in the news media through improved coverage, hiring, business practices and training programs. The institute began as a volunteer project with only nine working journalists.

In 1978, Sotomayor worked alongside the Friends of Journalism, which sought to keep the UA Journalism Department from closing. The group successfully helped to keep the Journalism Department open. Sotomayor also served on the board of advisors at the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism for two years.

In 1983, Sotomayor was a writer and co-editor, alongside Frank del Olmo and George Ramos, that produced a 278-part series on Latinos in Southern California. The series urged readers to see Latinos as more than just stereotypes. The series won the 1984 Pulitzer Prize for Public Service.

In 1998, Sotomayor received the Centennial Achievement Award from the University of Arizona, followed by induction into the Hall of Fame in 2002. That same year, he was named to the Hall of Fame of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists.