Our Distinguished Graduate, María Amalia León, will be recognized with the 2024 Ibero-American Patronage Prize

Universidad Nacional Pedro Henríquez Ureña (UNPHU) extends its congratulations to its distinguished graduate María Amalia León, who will be recognized at the 9th edition of the Ibero-American Patronage Awards 2024. Mrs. León is president of the Eduardo León Jiménez Foundation, general director of Centro León and adviser to the Administrative Board of the Dominican University Foundation Pedro Henríquez Ureña. The awards ceremony will take place on March 4 at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts of San Fernando, Madrid, one of the oldest institutions in Europe, founded at the beginning of the 18th century, and will be presided over by HM Queen Doña Sofia.

The Ibero-American Patronage Awards, promoted by Callia Foundation, have as their mission to recognize, and promote society’s commitment to art: patronage. According to its president, Carmen Reviriego, «the winners, by joining with generosity and humility to the initiative, help the awards inspire with their example other men and women to be involved with their same conviction in the conservation, promotion and dissemination of heritage and artistic talent».

Mrs. María Amalia León has developed an active career in the field of education in the Dominican Republic, especially in the areas of Literature and Philosophy. She co-founded and was academic director for 25 years of the Lux Mundi Educational Community. She holds a PhD in the field of Philosophy and Language from Universidad Complutense de Madrid. She received the distinction Doctor Honoris Causa from the APEC University in Santo Domingo.  

She is a member of the Board of Trustees of the Reina Sofía Foundation and the Friends of the Prado Museum Foundation in Spain, of the Latin American Procurement Committee of the Tate Modern Museum in the United Kingdom, 

of the Board of Advisors of the Institute of Dominican Studies of the City University of New York (CUNY DSI), of the National Board of the Smithsonian Institution, and a member of the Latin American and Caribbean Fund (LACF) of the Museum of Modern Art of New York (MoMA). She has been recognized with the Official Cross of the Order of Elizabeth the Catholic, conferred on behalf of Her Majesty King Don Felipe VI. She belongs to the National Council of Culture, among others, and since 2021 presides over the Volunteer Museum of the Colonial City of Santo Domingo, appointed in this honorary position by the President of the Dominican Republic.