FEATURED, FROM LEFT: Prisciliano “J.R.” Treviño, Executive Director, Hidalgo Economic Development Corporation, and Ángela Santana and Luis Flores, owners of Perro Cafe, 1016 Jackson Road in Hidalgo. They were participating in ribbon-cutting ceremonies of the new business on Tuesday, March 15, 2022. https://cityofhidalgo.net/economic-development-corporation.
Photograph Courtesy CITY OF HIDALGO ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION FACEBOOK
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South Texas College must establish campuses in more Hidalgo County communities, says STC trustee candidate Prisciliano “J.R.” Treviño
By DAVID A. DÍAZ
[email protected]
South Texas College must establish campuses in more Hidalgo County communities, says STC trustee candidate Prisciliano “J.R.” Treviño, Executive Director of the city of Hidalgo Economic Development Corporation.
Currently, South Texas College has campuses or centers in McAllen, Weslaco, Rio Grande City, Pharr and La Joya, according to its website.
https://campuses.southtexascollege.edu
Treviño on Wednesday February 2, 2022 filed for election to the position of District 3, Board of Trustees, South Texas College.
Members of the Board of Trustees, South Texas College, are each elected to serve terms of six years.
District 3 and District 4 are the two board positions up for election in early May 2022.
District 3 includes the cities of Hidalgo, Granjeño, south McAllen, southwest Pharr, and southeast Mission. Qualified residents in District 3 will be able to go to the polls from Monday, April 25, 2022 through Tuesday, May 3, 2022, or show up on Election Day, which will take place on Saturday, May 7, 2022.
“As part of my platform, I will work with the South Texas College leadership, our state and congressional delegation, and all other state boards and commissions, regional and local governments to build or expand campuses, extension facilities, and other physical assets in District 3,” said Treviño.
South Texas College is required by state law to serve all of Hidalgo County and Starr County, and my determination to bring its great academic resources, outstanding faculty and staff, statewide prestige, and jobs and positive economic development impact to more deserving, qualified, or underserved communities is what the Texas Legislature had in mind in 1993 when they first created South Texas College, then known as South Texas Community College,” Treviño added.
In addition to his call for South Texas College to physically expand in Hidalgo County, Treviño also listed the following other priorities on his platform:
• Expand South Texas College’s high school dual enrollment program to include a debt-free Bachelor’s program.
Duel enrollment programs include courses that can satisfy high school graduation requirements and award college credits at the same time. The student is enrolled in two course simultaneously – the high school course and the university course – and receives two grades.
South Texas College currently offers three Bachelor of Applied Technology degrees:Computer and Information Technologies, Technology Management, and Medical and Health Services Management; one Bachelor of Applied Science: Organizational Leadership; and one Bachelor of Science: Nursing RN to BSN.
A bachelor’s degree or baccalaureate is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six years. The two most common bachelor’s degrees are the Bachelor of Arts and the Bachelor of Science.
https://bachelors.southtexascollege.edu
• Participate in the National Junior College Athletic Association (JUCO junior colleges) in order to provide more opportunities for student/athletes. The NJCAA, founded in 1938, is the governing association of community college, state college and junior college athletics throughout the United States.
https://www.njcaa.org/landing/index
“We can help those local athletes who need to succeed in the classroom in order to have a chance to play at the NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association) level and also help them to develop more on the field to be able to compete at in the NCAA,” Treviño said. “This strategy will especially help those who can’t afford the much more expensive costs of attending all four years at a university.”
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletes from up to 1,268 North American institutions and conferences. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges and universities in the United States and Canada, and helps over 480,000 college student athletes who compete annually in college sports. The organization is headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Collegiate_Athletic_Association
• Reopen rural campuses for more community access and community outreach;
• Introduce innovative programs such as aviation pilots and flight engineers; and
• Be accessible to all District 3 residents, helping them with any issues they may face in dealing with South Texas College.
As well as being the only community college in Texas to offer five baccalaureate degrees, South Texas College provides more than 127 degree and certificate options, including associate degrees in a variety of liberal art, social science, business, math, science, technology, advanced manufacturing and allied health fields of study.
An associate’s degree is an academic program taken at the undergraduate level (the first stage after secondary school). It aims to give students the basic technical and academic knowledge and transferable skills they need to go on to employment or further study in their chosen field.
In the U.S., associate’s degrees are available at various types of college, including community colleges, junior colleges and technical colleges, affiliated colleges of universities and university institutes. It typically takes two years full-time to complete an associate’s degree.
For some students, an associate’s degree provides preparation for a bachelor’s degree, while for others it’s a qualification in its own right, helping to improve employment prospects compared to only having completed a secondary-level education.
https://www.topuniversities.com/blog/what-associates-degree
Certificate programs are relatively short term, three to nine months, low in cost, and have high rates of completion relative to degrees programs.
Certificates offer very specialized education and training that allow the student to develop transferable skill-sets specific to the work field or type of job they desire to be in. They also allow the student to dive right into their desired area of focus and to graduate in a shorter time frame with the skills they need to succeed in the work field.
https://martinsburgcollege.edu/blog/2017/11/07/college-certificate-program-many-people-enrolling/
Treviño Biographical Summary
Treviño has served as Executive Director, Hidalgo Economic Development Corporation, for eight years.
According to its website, the Hidalgo Economic Development Corporation, which serves the City of Hidalgo, is a non profit organization established to market Hidalgo as a premier location for business property. The HEDC has a core cultural focus while supporting local initiatives through history, cultural arts, entertainment, redevelopment (Historical Old Hidalgo), entrepreneurs and small and big business development. The organization works to create a sustainable economic environment that enhances the cultural history of Hidalgo and enhancing the quality of life for City of Hidalgo citizens.
https://cityofhidalgo.net/economic-development-corporation
Treviño provided some of his accomplishments during his ongoing service with the Hidalgo Economic Development Corporation, include:
• U.S. Department of Agriculture Intermediary Relending Program awards totaling more than $4.5 million for Hidalgo businesses;
• Federal Economic Development Administration $1.2 million grant for Hidalgo Infrastructure Development Project;
• Federal Emergency Management Agency $500,000 grant for northwest drainage project;
• U.S. Department of Agriculture $175,000 grant for Rural Business Incubator Project;
• Texas Parks and Wildlife Department $43,500 grant for Habitat & Angler Program; and
• Texas Parks and Wildlife Department $57,050 grant for Community Outdoor Outreach Program.
In addition to his economic development career, Treviño said he served 18 years, from 1998 to 2016 as a member of the Board of Trustees, Valley View Independent School District, where he successfully shaped and led vital support for several successful bond elections, which included building three elementary schools, an early college campus, central kitchen, bus barn, science annex complex, gymnasium, fine arts auditorium, a football program, a stadium, a field house, a junior high fine arts facility, and classroom additions throughout the district.
Treviño has been married for 41 years to Margarita Treviño, and the couple has raised three sons – Prisciliano Treviño, III (Robin), Eric Treviño (Annette), Adrian Treviño (Evelyn) – and one daughter, Priscilla Treviño (Derek). They also have 10 grandchildren, with an 11th grandchild on the way.
Delta Region in 2015 secured state legislation for expand STC presence
In 2015, the Texas Legislature approved House Bill 382, authored by Rep. Terry Canales, D-Edinburg, and sponsored by Sen. Eddie Lucio, Jr., D-Brownsville.
House Bill 382 changed the Education Code to require the board of trustees of the South Texas Community College District, beginning with the 2019–2020 academic year, to adopt and implement a plan to expand opportunity for instructional programs consisting of postsecondary courses leading to an associate degree offered in a classroom setting within the corporate limits of the municipality of Edcouch or Elsa and subjects such instructional programs to statutory provisions relating to branch campuses of a public junior college district.
https://capitol.texas.gov/BillLookup/BillSummary.aspx?LegSess=84R&Bill=HB382
Also under House Bill 382, the legislation noted that a junior college (community college) in Texas may establish and operate branch campuses, centers, or extension facilities which its service area (Hidalgo and Starr counties), provide that each branch campus, center, or extension facility is subject to the prior and continuing approval of the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, which is a state agency.
Such branch campuses, centers or extension facilities shall be within the role and scope of the junior college (community college) as determined by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board.
https://capitol.texas.gov/tlodocs/84R/billtext/html/HB00382F.htm
In addition to Canales as the primary author, joint authors of House Bill 382 were Rep. Óscar Longoria, D-Mission; Rep. Armando “Mando” Martínez, D-Weslaco, Rep. Ryan Guillén, R-Rio Grande City, and Rep. Eddie Lucio, III, D-Brownsville.
As the author (also known as the primary author) of House Bill 382, Canales was the legislator who filed the bill and guided it through the legislative process.
As joint authors, Longoria, Martínez, Guillén, and Lucio, III were, as allowed in the Texas House of Representatives, were members authorized by Canales to join in the authorship of the measure and have their names shown following Canale’s name on official printings of the measure, on calendars, and in the journal.
Lucio, Jr., as sponsor of House Bill 32, guided that bill through the Senate after it had been approved by the House of Representatives.
https://tlc.texas.gov/docs/legref/Glossary.pdf
History of South Texas College
When South Texas College was approaching its 25th anniversary of its creation by the Texas Legislature, the higher education system published background on the anniversary, including a video by former Gov. Ann Richards, who was the keynote speaker.
A summary of some of that lengthy history follows:
As a young teen, current STC Trustee Rose Benavidez recalls traveling with her father, the late Manuel Benavidez, across Starr County looking for support for what was then known as South Texas Community College (STCC).
Her father had just been appointed as a trustee for the college, and in the summer of 1995, public acceptance for STCC had snowballed, resulting in an election that saw voters approve three propositions that were essential for the college.
“When I was a kid driving around with my father I remember they were having classes in laundromats or they were allowed by school districts to have classes in old libraries,” Benavidez said. “I can recall my very first experience with the college was when I was maybe 15 years old. But far beyond the brick and mortar is the impact and the change in the people of our community.”
In June 1993, then-Gov. Ann Richards signed legislation creating South Texas Community College, converting the former Texas State Technical College campus in McAllen into a locally governed community college serving Hidalgo and Starr Counties.
“I had the passion, the commitment and the tenacity to say ‘by God, we’re going to do this,” said then- STC President Dr. Shirley A. Reed. “When you look at the level of poverty in the Valley and the number of individuals who haven’t even had an opportunity to finish high school, much less go to college, it becomes clear there is no end to the work that needs to be done in the Valley.”
South Texas College opened its doors as South Texas Community College in September 1993, and classes began with 1,058 students.
“To see friends, family and ex-students come through our programs and to see them graduate has been a very satisfying experience,” said trustee Dr. Alejo Salinas. “To hear the feedback from those who have come here, and how full of pride they are with their education, that’s a very rewarding experience for me. It provides me with plenty of reason for wanting to be a part of this college.”
https://www.southtexascollege.edu/25-years/
Locations
Mid-Valley Campus
400 N. Border
Weslaco, Texas 78596
https://campuses.southtexascollege.edu/mid-valley-campus.html
Pecan Campus
3201 W. Pecan
McAllen, Texas 78501
https://campuses.southtexascollege.edu/pecan-campus.html
Pecan Plaza
2501 W. Pecan Blvd.
McAllen, Texas 78501
https://campuses.southtexascollege.edu/pecan-plaza.html
Technology Campus
3700 W. Military Highway
McAllen, Texas 78503
https://campuses.southtexascollege.edu/tech-campus.html
Nursing & Allied Health
1101 E. Vermont
McAllen, Texas 78503
https://campuses.southtexascollege.edu/nah-campus.html
Starr County Campus
142 FM 3167
Rio Grande City, Texas 78582
https://campuses.southtexascollege.edu/starr-county-campus.html
Regional Center for Public Safety Excellence
3901 S. Cage Boulevard
Pharr, Texas 78577
https://campuses.southtexascollege.edu/rcpse-campus.html
Higher Education Centers
La Joya Higher Education Center
Jimmy Carter Early College High School
603 College Drive
La Joya, Texas 78560
https://campuses.southtexascollege.edu/lajoya/
Pharr Higher Education Center
1100 E. Business Highway 83
Pharr, Texas 78577
https://campuses.southtexascollege.edu/pharr/
The elections for members of the Board of Trustees, South Texas College, are highlighted in the Manuel of Policy for the higher education system:
A Confirmation Election was held on August 12, 1995. The voters in the College District approved the confirmation of South Texas Community College, which became South Texas College on June 24, 2004.
As a result of such confirmation, Board of Trustee elections were required. Section 130.0311 was amended in 1995 to provide that the then seven (7) current trustees would draw lots to determine the initial term for each Trustee District so as to provide for staggered six (6) year terms.
Such procedure was followed resulting in the terms and election dates as provided below.
Date of Regular General and Runoff Elections
The Board shall call and hold regular elections for Trustee Districts on a Uniform Election Day in May of each even-numbered year as follows:
a. Districts 5 and 7 in 2008 and every six (6) years thereafter; and
b. Districts 3 and 4 in 2010 and every six (6) years thereafter; and, c. Districts 1, 2 and 6 in 2006 and every six (6) years thereafter(Section 130.082 of the Texas Education Code).
A candidate must receive more votes than any other candidate to be elected to the Board of Trustees (Section 2.001, Texas Election Code).
In the case where two (2) or more candidates for a Trustee positions tie for the number of votes required to be elected, the Board shall follow the applicable procedures as set out in Section 2.002 of the Texas Election Code.
Election to be Called
The Board shall call an election in accordance with the Texas Election Code.
Ballots
The location on the ballot of the names of candidates for each position shall be chosen by the candidates.
Reporting Regarding Campaign Funds
Candidates for the Board shall file any designations and reports required by law, including the filing of any required designation of a campaign treasurer and all required financial statements with the Secretary of the Board in accordance with applicable law and directives fromthe Texas Secretary of State.
https://admin.southtexascollege.edu/president/policies/pdf/1000/1400.pdf
TEXAS SALES TAX HOLIDAY ON EMERGENCY PREPARATION SUPPLIES TO TAKE PLACE APRIL 23-25, 2022, ANNOUNCES SEN. HINOJOSA
Sen. Juan Hinojosa, D-McAllen, is reminding Texans that the Texas Sales Tax Holiday on Emergency Preparation Supplies is coming up soon.
Beginning Saturday, April 23 through midnight on Monday, April 25, 2022, Texans can purchase emergency supplies and hurricane-proofing materials without paying a sales tax.
This sales tax break is the result of Senate Bill 904, which was authored by Hinojosa, and approved by the Texas Legislature and Gov. Greg Abbott in 2015.
Under this legislation, Texans will be better able to prepare themselves for severe weather events like winter storms, hurricanes, floods, and wildfires.
“Sadly, in recent years, natural disasters have become more and more frequent and intense across Texas,” Hinojosa said. “Due to climate change, these disasters are likely to continue and even worsen.”
He said Senate Bill 904 makes it easier for families across Texas to purchase the supplies necessary to be ready for any disaster their communities might face.
“I urge all Texans to have an emergency preparedness plan and ensure you have all the supplies necessary to keep loved ones safe during an emergency. Despite our inability to prevent disasters from occurring, we are able to be as prepared as possible,” he said.
Tax free items include certain portable generators and hurricane shutters, as well as smaller emergency and storm preparedness items such as weather radios, rope ladders, smoke detectors, fire extinguishers, and first aid kits.
There is no limit on the number of qualifying items a person can purchase.
A full list of emergency preparation supplies can be found on the Comptroller’s website:
https://comptroller.texas.gov/taxes/publications/98-1017.php
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Petra Reyna contributed to this article. For more on this and other Texas legislative news stories that affect the Rio Grande Valley metropolitan region, please log on to Titans of the Texas Legislature (TitansoftheTexasLegislature.com).
