Joaquin Borrego, a University of Nevada, Reno graduate, is the recipient of the inaugural Lifetime Achievement Award for Excellence in Research in Latino/a Psychology. 

The award was made by the Hispanic Issues Special Interest group, which is a part of the Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies. The association is a multidisciplinary organization committed to the advancement of scientific approaches to the understanding and improvement of human functioning through the investigation and application of behavioral, cognitive, and other evidence-based principles to the assessment, prevention, treatment of human problems, and the enhancement of health and well-being.

"I express a heartfelt thanks to Dr. William Follette, Steven Hayes, and Victoria Follette for introducing me to the Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies back in 1992," Borrego said. He also continued to express gratitude to Dr. Lois Mikawa, who continues to support the University's Mikawa Fellowship program, which supports under-represented students pursuing doctoral degrees.

Borrego's award is the first of its kind for the Hispanic Issues in Behavior Therapy Special Interest Group. His research focuses on family dynamics, child maltreatment and community interventions with underserved populations.  He studies how culture influences parenting practices and investigates the validity of parent training programs and intervention methods to prevent child maltreatment. As a result of his research, he was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award.

Currently an Associate Professor and Director of Clinical Training at the Texas Tech University's psychology department, Borrego attended the University of Nevada, Reno, where he received a doctorate degree in clinical psychology in 2001. While at the University, Borrego was one of the early recipients of the Jim Mikawa Ethnic Minority Fellowship, which is designed to increase the diversity of psychologists in both academic and applied positions.

"Dr. Borrego is a gifted psychologist who brings a solid scientific approach to the discipline, with a focus on helping a number of underserved groups," Victoria Follette, foundation professor and chair for the psychology department, said. "Moreover, he brings great compassion to the work."

Since, Borrego has served several editorial boards for psychology journals and is the director of a therapy program. He is also one of the founding members of the Hispanic Issues in Behavior Therapy Special Interest Group, founded in the late 1990s. He was a co-chair for the group for a decade in the 2000s.