Category Archives: News

McAllen International Airport Elevates Travel Experience

e-Brief Features News Transportation & Travel Comments
McAllen International Airport

McAllen International Airport is now offering Tap N’ Fly ticketless parking, a third TSA screening lane and the new MFE VIP Lounge. MFE is now the first commercial airport south of San Antonio to offer both a ticketless parking system and three TSA security screening lanes, reducing wait times and improving the security process for all passengers. “Investments in our infrastructure moves our city forward, which positions McAllen as a…

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Port of Brownsville Internships Build Bridges

e-Brief Features Manufacturing/Industrial News Comments
Summer interns Samuel Hinojosa, Pierce De La Cruz Grove and Antonio Gutierrez stand at Dock 15 at the Port of Brownsville, where they gained hands-on experience in maritime operations, finance and cargo services as part of the port’s commitment to workforce development. (Courtesy)

Looking over the turning basin from the Port of Brownsville’s Harbor Master’s Office, Maritime Business Administration major Samuel Hinojosa spent this summer preparing for his final semester at Texas A&M University – Galveston, as an intern gaining valuable hands-on experience in the maritime industry. Hinojosa was one of three college students selected to intern at the Port of Brownsville this summer as part of its ongoing workforce development efforts. Alongside…

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STC Professor to Serve on National Education Committee

e-Brief Features Education Moving On Up News Comments
South Texas College Assistant Professor of Psychological Science Liza Veliz

South Texas College Assistant Professor of Psychological Science Liza Veliz has been appointed to serve on the Committee on Associate and Baccalaureate Education, a national-level committee under the American Psychological Association’s Board of Educational Affairs. Veliz will officially begin her term in January 2026, representing psychology faculty at two-year colleges nationwide. Her position comes from being nominated by colleagues from across the country recognizing her leadership, advocacy and commitment to…

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IMAS to Host Free Back to School Bash

Community Events e-Brief Features Featured News Comments
IMAS Back to School Bash

The International Museum of Art & Science invites families to celebrate the start of the school year at its annual Back to School Bash on Aug. 16 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The family-friendly event offers free admission and a full day of interactive learning, creativity and community connection. Back to School Bash, supported by McAllen Public Utility, H-E-B Helping Here and Wonderful Citrus, will feature hands-on art and…

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Chamber Leaders See Winter Texan Shifts

Community News Comments
RV Parks throughout the Rio Grande Valley continue to be the primary places of residency for Winter Texans. (Courtesy)

The demographics of Winter Texans are changing and professionals in the tourism and hospitality industries are calling for more frequent studies and research into this vital group of visitors with deep connections to the Rio Grande Valley.  Leah Woolridge, the vice president of Visit McAllen, sees an age shift among Winter Texans. Retirees are younger, more active and looking for things to do, she said. “You use to be able…

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Ring! Ring!

Community News Comments

As school has started or will very soon, let’s ease off the accelerator and keep an eye out for our little ones. Hot summer temperatures of course are really kicking in, and so are the classroom doors for a new year of learning, growing and exploring. Back-to-school sales, stuffing the backpacks and new sneakers are all part of daily lives this month. The roads are again congested, and the frequent…

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RGV Native Grows Retailing In Region

News Real Estate Comments
Merit Commercial Real Estate CEO Will Collins, center, with Mercedes community leaders and members of the Schwarz family.

McAllen native Will Collins has built a formidable retail and commercial real estate company whose developments span much of South Texas. From its headquarters in San Antonio, Merit Commercial Real Estate shows on its webpage dark blue diamonds pinned on a Texas map. Each pin represents a Merit development project with clusters of them in the Rio Grande Valley and the San Antonio-area market. Collins comes from a banking family.…

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Teaching Program Inspires RGV Students

Education News Non-Profit Comments
The 2025 TFA Corps training hard and preparing to team up with mentor teachers for summer practicum. (Teach For America Rio Grande Valley photo)

Princeton University student Wendy Kopp formulated the idea of Teach For America in 1989 for her undergraduate thesis.  The first participants in the nascent TFA program began their lifelong pursuit of educational excellence in 1990. Teach for America Rio Grande Valley was founded the following year. The national organization and its affiliates around the country are non-profit institutions. They recruit and train recent college graduates and professionals to teach in…

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Summit Touts Delta Area Unity

Community News Comments
Leadership Elsa provides training sessions to equip community leaders, small business owners and city staff with the skills to make a positive impact in their city. (Courtesy)

The Delta Area communities of Edcouch, Elsa and La Villa are a cluster of cities along state Highway 107 and located away from the main strip of regional business activity along Expressway 83. These communities are steadily getting a foothold in raising their collective profile in the Rio Grande Valley. Elsa is seeing retail growth and the rooftops of new homes along FM 88 that are located near a Wal-Mart…

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RGV Testing & Growing New Crops

Agriculture News Comments
Grapes are among the newer crops Rio Farms is growing and testing in Monte Alto. (Courtesy)

The footprint of the Rio Grande Valley’s citrus industry has largely retreated to the northern reaches of Hidalgo County from what once was a regional reach of over 100,000 acres. The RGV citrus industry of today counts about 25,000 acres of grapefruits and oranges. The turning points for an industry that historically defined the region’s early agricultural history were the freezes of 1983 and 1989. The damage from those weather…

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