Rosie Castro, the controversial mother of Congressman Joaquin Castro and former Mayor Julian Castro, will receive an honorary doctorate from Our Lady of the Lake University at the school's commencement ceremonies on Sunday, News Radio 1200 WOAI reports.
Julian Castro will deliver the commencement address.
Mrs. Castro is a 1975 graduate of Our Lady of the Lake.
"It is a really big honor," Mrs. Castro said. "It is a particularly great feeling to receive an honorary PhD on Mother's Day."
Mrs. Castro is controversial for once telling New York Times Magazine that the defenders of the Alamo were "a bunch of drunks and crooks and slaveholding imperialists who stole land that didn't belong to them."
Mrs. Castro was also active in the La Raza Unida movement in the 1970s.
OLLU says it is awarding the honor to Mrs. Castro because of her service to the community, including as an adjunct professor at UTSA, as a consultant for the Annie E. Casey Foundation, and Special Assistant to the CEO of the San Antonio Housing Authority, and as Interim Dean of Students and Director of the Center for Academic Transitions at Palo Alto College
."My mother has been an inspiration for many in San Antonio," Joaquin Castro said. "She showed us the importance of service, the value of education, and the impact that involvement in politics at every level can have on a community. I'm proud that my mom will receive this honorary doctorate from her alma mater."