The University of Texas at Brownsville and Texas Southmost College
Did you know....
many of the students of The University of Texas at Brownsville and Texas Southmost College (UTB/TSC) and their families reside and conduct business in both the United States and Mexico?
Given the strategic location of UTB/TSC on the U.S./Mexico border, the institution is uniquely qualified and positioned to lead in expanding the knowledge regarding the human, political, cultural and artistic interactions in the northern hemisphere. Understanding the dynamic relationship that occurs in this region is critical to the successful development of human capabilities in both countries, and engaging students in studies relevant to the growth and development of this region is critical to the continued growth of UTB/TSC. In fulfillment of its mission as a community university, UTB/TSC set out to find the necessary funds to aid in the research of this fast-growing border region and to attract and retain highly qualified scholars to develop the students' understanding of this diverse area.
UTB/TSC was able to reach its goals through funding from Texas' largest private philanthropic foundation, the renowned Houston Endowment Inc. In the fall of 2000, Houston Endowment Inc. demonstrated its continuing faith in UTB/TSC with a $2 million grant to establish the university's first endowed chairs and to fund student scholarships. The grant is the largest foundation grant UTB/TSC has ever received, and it is the second from the Houston Endowment Inc., a Texas institution that has been making charitable contributions across the state since 1937. The grant will be used to endow faculty chairs in science, math, technology, and border and leadership studies - all areas of particular interest to UTB/TSC and its border region.
Of the $2 million grant, $500,000 has been designated as a scholarship challenge grant. The Rio Grande Valley community of 100,000 not only met the two-year challenge deadline it did so within a matter of months of the announcement of the grant. The community proved it could rise to the challenge, work together, and raise the donations to support higher education. In fact, during the year ended August 31, 2001, UTB/TSC was already able to establish two endowments with gifts that partially matched the scholarship challenge. The Tudor & Katherine Uhlhorn Endowed Scholarship for Education and the Amador R. Rodriguez Memorial Scholarship for the Justice System are both invested in the LTF. UTB/TSC expects to receive the proceeds from the $2 million grant in the spring of 2002.
"We know that human capital is a very integral part of a healthy, vibrant community," said businesswoman Rosie Zamora, a member of the Houston Endowment Inc.'s Board of Directors, in presenting the grant at a special ceremony on December 7, 2000. A Valley native herself, Ms. Zamora said the Foundation is well aware of the exciting new changes taking place at UTB/TSC and in Brownsville, and of its important role in training the leaders of tomorrow. "We know that what happens here at this institution in Brownsville, and in the Rio Grande Valley, impacts Houston, the State of Texas, and our country."
