University of Puerto Rico faculty

Dr. Juan Arturo Rivero Quintero (March 5, 1923 in Santurce, Puerto Rico – March 3, 2014) was a Puerto Rican biologist who founded the Dr. Juan A. Rivero Zoo at the University of Puerto Rico's Mayagüez Campus.

Víctor Manuel Blanco (March 10, 1918 – March 8, 2011) was a Puerto Rican astronomer who in 1959 discovered Blanco 1, a galactic cluster. Blanco was the second Director of the Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory in Chile, which had the largest telescope in the Southern Hemisphere at the time. In 1995, the 4-meter telescope was dedicated in his honor and named the Víctor M. Blanco Telescope; it is also known as the "Blanco 4m."

Elías López Sobá (17 April 1927 – 14 August 2023) was a Puerto Rican classical music pianist and educator. Together with musical director Justino Diaz, Elias López Sobá co-directed the annual Casals Festival from 2010. Some sources considered him one of the most outstanding pianists and instrumentalists in 20th century Puerto Rico.

Mario Rubén García Palmieri (August 2, 1927 – September 16, 2014) was a cardiologist and the first Hispanic to have the distinction of being designated a "Master" by the American College of Cardiology (MACC) in recognition of his contributions to the field of cardiology. Among the many societies to which he belonged are the Puerto Rican Society of Cardiology and the PR Medical Association.

Augusto Rodríguez a.k.a. "Tito" (February 9, 1904 – January 5, 1993) was a music composer and chorus director. Rodríguez was the founder of the Choir of the University of Puerto Rico.

José Trías Monge (May 5, 1920 – June 24, 2003) was a lawyer and judge in Puerto Rico. He served as the 11th chief justice of the Supreme Court of Puerto Rico from 1974 to 1985.Born in San Juan, Puerto Rico, he was appointed Chief Justice in 1974, without any prior court service, by Gov. Rafael Hernández Colón, who, as President of the Senate of Puerto Rico between 1969 and 1972, had espoused that Chief Justices should be selected from among current Associate Justices.
In 1940, he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Puerto Rico and, in 1943, obtained a master of Arts degree from Harvard University. The following year, he graduated with a law degree, also from Harvard Law School. In 1947 he completed doctoral studies in law at Yale Law School. From 1947 to 1949, he was a professor at the University of Puerto Rico.
Prior to his service as Chief Justice, Trías Monge was one of the top delegates to Puerto Rico's Constitutional Assembly between 1951 and 1952. Along with Muñoz Marín and Dr. Antonio Fernós Isern, he is considered one of the chief architects of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico's Constitution. He then served as deputy Secretary of Justice of Puerto Rico under Gov. Luis Muñoz Marín from 1949 to 1953 and as Secretary of Justice from 1953 to 1957.As Chief Justice, he chaired the 1980 Constitutional Board for Electoral Reapportionment. He held the office of Chief Justice until his retirement on October 20, 1985.
Trias Monge is the author of several books on the judicial history and political status of Puerto Rico, in both Spanish and English.
Several years prior to his death, despite his own contribution to the drafting and approval of the 1952 Commonwealth Constitution, he began writing and speaking publicly that Puerto Rico remained a territory or colony of the United States. He died June 24, 2003, in Boston, Massachusetts at age 83.

María Teresa Babín Cortés (May 30, 1910- December 19, 1989) was a Puerto Rican educator, literary critic, and essayist. She also wrote poetry and plays. Among her best-known works is Panorama de la Cultura Puertorriqueña and several essays on Federico García Lorca.