EDINBURG — In the same historic building where Edinburg College commenced in 1927, pen was put to paper Wednesday for the future of education in Edinburg and the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley.
The word “historic” was repeated throughout an Edinburg CISD special board meeting Wednesday morning as the district approved a memorandum of understanding with UTRGV to develop a new collegiate high school.
“It is a historical event because, like all the other school districts in South Texas and in Texas, we have the traditional high schools which our students are enrolled in. They are also taking dual credit and pre-AP courses,” Edinburg CISD Board President Dominga “Minga” Vela said. “This is an added high school where you’re on a faster track for college credit, for picking the area that you want to excel in whether it be nursing or education, health sciences. This is an added to our normal traditional high schools.”
The new high school will enroll around 800 students and will be located off of Expressway 281 and Freddy Gonzalez Drive, pending approval from the UT System Board of Regents.
Wednesday’s meeting marked the first step toward making the new collegiate school a reality.
The agreement between the two entities also comes after UTRGV inked a partnership with McAllen ISD, signing a memorandum of understanding for the development of a collegiate school in partnership with the city of McAllen as well.
With only one item on the agenda, the memorandum of understanding was unanimously approved by the Edinburg school board following some brief discussion about the proposed collaboration.
The partnership between the two schools will be 50-50, with each educational system splitting half the cost for the new school. When asked for an estimate of how much the new school will cost, both Vela and UTRGV President Guy Bailey said that it was too soon to determine.
Wednesday ,March,23,2022 in Edinburg. (Delcia Lopez/The Monitor | [email protected])
Students who attend the school will attend class at their respective school districts and UTRGV simultaneously. Upon graduation, they will have 60 credit hours in their chosen majors.
“It’s important because it offers students something not only that they can’t currently, but that you can’t get at other places in the state,” Bailey said. “This is unique in the state of Texas. It’s not just that it’s unique in Edinburg, it’s unique in the state of Texas.”
“It’s a great partnership, and it builds on things that have been going on here for almost a century,” Bailey continued. “We’re very pleased.”
Vela said that the new school would be open to all students in the district. She said that it is an opportunity for students of low income families to get a head start on their college careers.
“This personally means a lot to me,” Vela said. “This is an opportunity for all of our students — not just our top 10 or valedictorians, but those students that are economically disadvantaged, as I was.”
“My parents instilled in myself and my five sisters that the only way to get out of the economically disadvantaged status was through education,” Vela continued. “I saw it. I lived it. I am a product of ECISD.”
