Héctor J. Maymí-Sugrañes is the Dean of Libraries and General Studies at Western Illinois University. He has a Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin with a major in Library and Information Studies and a minor in History. Also, he has a Master’s degree in Latin American and Iberian Studies from the same institution. Before becoming Dean of Libraries, he worked in Mexico for fifteen years. Since 1996, Dr. Maymí-Sugrañes has been the project director of more than six federal grants, three with the U.S. Department of Education. He also directed several grant proposals in California, Pennsylvania, and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico at the state and local levels. Internationally, he led several federal, state, and local grants in Mexico. He was responsible for funding from foundations and private organizations in the United States, Puerto Rico, and Mexico. For twenty-five years, he has managed more than sixty million dollars.

Dr. Maymí-Sugrañes, as part of his scholarly work, has researched social organizations in Latin America and the Latinx community in the United States. He has also founded and directed social organizations in Latin America and the Latinx community. He has published extensively on social organizations in Latin America, Puerto Rico, and the United States.