University of Texas Rio Grande Valley Information

The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) is a public research university with multiple campuses in the Rio Grande Valley region of Texas. It is part of the University of Texas System. UTRGV was founded in 2013, it entered into full operation in 2015 after the consolidation of the University of Texas at Brownsville/Texas Southmost College, the University of Texas–Pan American and the UT Regional Academic Health Center – Harlingen. The university has a new medical school.

UTRGV is one of the largest universities in the U.S. to have a majority Hispanic student population; 89.2% of its students are Hispanic, virtually all of them Mexican Americans.

On December 6, 2012, the University of Texas System Board of Regents approved a proposal to abolish The University of Texas–Pan American and The University of Texas at Brownsville/Texas Southmost College, and create The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley in their place. The new institution was planned to include a medical school and have access to the Texas Permanent University Fund (PUF). Texas Governor Rick Perry signed SB 24 into law, approving the creation of the new university in June 2013. In December 2013, the UT System Board of Regents voted to name the new institution The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV).

Dr. Guy Bailey was selected as the founding university president. Dr. Bailey, in turn, selected Dr. Havidan Rodriguez as the founding Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs (EVPAA), and Dr. Janna Arney as Deputy President. In late August 2017, Dr. Havidan Rodriguez resigned his position as Provost/EVPAA to become the 20th President of The University at Albany, SUNY. After his resignation was approved, Dr. Bailey appointed Dr. Patricia Alvarez McHatton as the Interim Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs.

In November 2014, the UT System Board of Regents approved the "Vaqueros" as the athletic nickname for University of Texas Rio Grande Valley. They also approved the official colors of blue, green, and orange.

The university officially opened on August 31, 2015, with UT System chancellor Bill McRaven, U.S. Representative Rubén Hinojosa and Texas State Senator Juan "Chuy" Hinojosa attending the flag-raising ceremony. McRaven said, "One hundred years from now, Texas will look back and say that this day changed Texas forever."

To honor the largest donation in the history of higher education in the Rio Grande Valley, the College of Business and Entrepreneurship was named Robert C. Vackar College of Business and Entrepreneurship. Robert C. Vackar, CEO of Bert Ogden Auto Group donated $15 million in the form of an endowment to the college.

The universitys property totals 550 acres. UTRGV owns 105 buildings, some of the properties include:

UTRGV offers 64 bachelors, 49 masters, and 4 doctoral programs (in addition to 2 cooperative doctoral programs). For the Academic Year 2015–2016, 92.7% of enrolled students came from the Cameron, Hidalgo, Starr, and Willancy counties. The ethnic enrollment is 89.2% Hispanic (Fall 2017).

The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley is the fourth-best university in Texas, according to the BestColleges.com. The rankings assess relative quality based on academic outcomes, affordability, and the breadth and depth of online learning opportunities.

In 2017, The Hispanic Outlook in Higher Education Magazine has ranked UTRGV 3rd in the country in awarding bachelors degrees to Hispanic students.

The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley has been ranked 6th among the 50 most affordable online Master of Business Administration in Financial Planning degrees in the country.

The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley – Master of Public Affairs (MPA) online degree program has been ranked No. 21 out of 50 universities in the United States for its quality and affordability. UTRGVs MPA program is the top-ranked program in the University of Texas System, followed by UT Arlington in 22nd place.

In 2017, The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley was ranked No. 6 (out of 56 Texas Universities) for lowest student loan debt in the state of Texas.

Eleven colleges and schools formed the academic foundation for UTRGV, including:

UTRGV inherited the academic accreditation of its legacy institutions. The university is fully accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools.

UTRGV was notified on December 6, 2016 that it was being placed on a 12-month probation by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC). The reason why UTRGV was placed on probation because of the complexity of a transition that involved the separation of UTB/TSC, the separate accreditation of TSC, and the formation of UTRGV. UTRGV will learn of the probation-removal decision by the SACSCOC Board of Trustees in December 2017. The SACSCOC Board of Trustees on December 11 announced it removed The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley from probationary status. The decision by the board to remove UTRGV from probationary status was based on the university successfully addressing the Statewide Single Audit for FY 2017 conducted by the Texas State Auditor’s Office.

The UTRGV School of Medicine received preliminary accreditation from the Liaison Committee on Medical Education in October 2016. In May 2016, the School of Medicine received accreditation from the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) to offer a medical residency program in psychiatry.

Legislation to establish a law school in UTRGV was introduced by representative Eddie Lucio III in November 2014.[needs update]

Prior to the 2008 U.S. Presidential Election, on February 22, 2008, then-Senator Barack Obama visited the UTRGV Edinburg Campus (then known as the University of Texas-Pan American) to talk to college students about better paying jobs and tuition assistance.

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