Aracely Rodriguez has been selected as the “Outstanding Senior” by the University of Arizona School of Art for the 2025 spring semester.
Here’s a summary of Professor Irene Bald Romero’s nomination letter:
Aracely is an exceptional student—the only undergraduate in a graduate-level IDA course—engaged, serious, creative, and always contributing in thoughtful and profound ways. A studio art major with a 4.0 GPA, she also stands out for her consistent community service, leadership, and deep connection to the experiences of people of color. As a bilingual American of Mexican descent, Aracely has eagerly collaborated with campus and Tucson organizations, sharing her artistic practice and amplifying diverse voices.
She illustrated the 2024 Indigenous Peoples Day artwork for the Tohono O’odham Student Association and this spring worked on three major projects: designing graphics for the College of Nursing’s INCATS curriculum, designing a handbook for the American Indian Health-Area Health Education Center, and leading the design team for the Braiding Knowledges for Community Resilience Symposium. Since 2024, she has supported communications, design, and social media at the Indigenous Resilience Center.
Her earlier leadership includes serving as President of the National Honor Society at Arizona Virtual Academy and Student Council Historian. She has volunteered with MOCA Tucson and the Eller College of Management. Exceptionally organized, always upbeat, and positive, Aracely achieves more than most because she makes it possible.
- Spring 2025 Graduation Convocation | May 18 | 2p | Centennial Hall
How would you describe your experience at the university?
My favorite experience was attending the 2024 U of A Indigenous Peoples Day and be the official artist for the year. It was awesome to see the community gather at the Mall to watch all the different cultural dances from various Indigenous communities, which included Aztec, O’odham, Yaqui and more. There were different vendors present and other student organizations. The night concluded in a Waila dance, my first time dancing in one (but certainly not the last!)
What’s your favorite memory or experience?
I greatly enjoyed being a site captain for the 2023 Eller College of Management’s “Make a Difference Day.” Not only did it give me my first experience as a “leader” in a college setting, but it also allowed me to make art with students who normally don’t do it regularly. Although that October day was extremely warm, all the business majors in my group were extremely excited to color in the chalk design my illustration class designed. It was a heart-warming experience and eye-opening realization to never take what I do for granted.
How did you get involved in community service?
Some School of Art friends volunteered with the United Way Arizona painting mini canvases for MLK Day 2025. As a part of my work for U of A Indigenous Resilience, I’ve been honored to visit the Tohono O’odham and Pascua Yaqui to participate in events related to STEM. I help to provide manual support for community events like Native Voices in Film, Native Voices in STEM and community healing circles.
What are your post-graduation plans?
I definitely plan to keep doing graphic design, and I’d love to continue doing it for the communities here in Arizona as I’ve been doing for the past year or so. I also plan on expanding my illustrative practice- creating work about the causes I care about (immigrant rights, indigenous rights) as well as making work highlighting my heritage and my homeland is something I plan to focus on.