Category Archives: News

UTRGV Ranks No. 1 University In Texas

Education Featured News Comments
UTRGV

The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley on Monday started the 2023-24 academic year as the No. 1 university in Texas, based on Washington Monthly magazine’s annual college guide and rankings. According to Washington Monthly, instead of rewarding schools for their prestige, wealth and exclusivity, its rankings give points to universities that help non-wealthy students earn remunerative degrees, encourage students to vote and serve their country, and produce the scholars…

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UTRGV Touts Third-Fastest Growing Public Doctoral Institution

Education Featured News Comments
UTRGV

The Chronicle of Higher Education recently released the Fall 2023 issue of the Almanac of Higher Education 2023, where for the sixth year in a row, UTRGV is ranked as one of the top 10 fastest-growing public doctoral institutions in the United States. The latest rankings in the almanac reflect the overall enrollment during the decade of 2011-2021. While the nation’s overall enrollment declined during that period, UTRGV surged and was ranked as the third-fastest growing institution…

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Therapist Comes Home To Help Children

Education News Comments
A large play area inside ABA Connect allows behavior technicians and therapists to apply the individualized behavioral interventions for children with autism spectrum disorder as they play.

Roberto Silva is a Mission native and University of Texas-Pan American graduate who left his hometown area before returning in recent months to provide behavioral therapy services for children. Silva began his career teaching special-education students in Mission and La Joya. He enjoyed working with special needs children. Silva yearned to serve them in a different way. He wanted to specialize in applied behavior analysis, a research-based behavioral therapy for…

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Developer’s Belief In Mercedes Pays Off

News Retail Comments
It was all smiles on Aug. 7 for the ribbon cutting formally opening the Gateway Travel Center in Mercedes.

Mohamed Sharaf’s initial business visit to the Rio Grande Valley was one of getting a feel for a region where he wanted to build and open a travel center. The concept is one of a modern-day truck stop with lots of floor space for food, snacks and beverages with extra-large bathrooms. Think Buc-ee’s with a different variation of a similar template as designed by Sharaf’s Victron Energy Corporation. One of…

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Harlingen Trail Features Nature & Fitness

News Recreation & Tourism Comments
Two cyclists enjoy vehicular-free rides down the new stretch of Harlingen's arroyo hike and bike trail.

A freshly surfaced pocket parking lot by Boggus Ford in Harlingen offers a clue of something new afoot by the Arroyo Colorado.  Take a left from an existing trail of two decades into a new section of the Arroyo Colorado Hike and Bike Trail. It descends to the arroyo and then back toward Expressway 77. The new extension runs 1.6 miles, going under an expressway bridge on a trail lined…

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Vegan Baker Finds Sweet Success In RGV

Food & Entertainment News Comments
Vegan pastries look just as good and the taste rivals any to be found at panaderias.

Amanda Nolan grew up the daughter of a small business owner, a mother who set a template to follow. Sure enough, Nolan started young with an artsy bent in making trinkets and homemade jewelry popular with her classmates. It gave her the first indications of what it’s like to make your own money. “It was something I was around,” she said of the entrepreneurial spirit. “I followed the momentum.” The…

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Nursing School Partners With RGV Hospitals

Healthcare News Comments
Kyle Hunt is the president of the Texas School of Health Sciences and his nursing school is partnering with Prime Healthcare hospitals in the Rio Grande Valley to develop more registered nurses for the region.

Three Rio Grande Valley hospitals are addressing the region’s chronic nursing shortage with a bold plan to develop their own registered nurses. The hospitals are Harlingen Medical Center, Mission Regional Medical Center and Knapp Medical Center in Weslaco. The group’s parent company is California-based Prime Healthcare. The latter has entered into an agreement with the Texas School of Health Sciences to offer an 18-month, 40-hour weekly immersion program that will…

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Let’s Build a Resilient Economy. Let’s Improve Immigration Policy. 

Community e-Brief Features News Comments
immigration policies

Texas immigrants are vital to the state’s success. As a state so heavily impacted by immigration policies, it would be welcoming to see our congressional leaders pass reforms that benefit Texans, the immigration process and our economy. However, lawmakers struggle to take true bipartisan action on immigration and every year they fail to cross the finish line. At the Texas International Produce Association, we see firsthand the effect that immigrants…

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Beach Picnics Give SPI New Experience

Featured News Professional Services Comments

Growing up the daughter of a restaurateur taught Nadia Turner the importance of customer service and accommodating a client’s wishes. The family’s 5,000-square-foot Ann’s Restaurant in San Juan was a popular spot for local residents and Winter Texans in celebrating birthday parties and anniversaries. Turner has stayed in the hospitality business and branched out recently into a new realm of services. SPI Luxury Beach Picnics By Nadia is a far…

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McAllen Ranks 3 For First-Time Homebuyers

Community e-Brief Features News Comments
(photo exploremcallen.com)

McAllen has been ranked number three of the top 15 cities in the United States for first-time homebuyers by the financial services website SmartAsset.com. Five Texas cities land among the top 15 places to buy a home for the first time. This study examined 185 metro areas and cities were ranked based on four metrics, composed of: Affordability: Median sale price relative to median income. Median sale price comes from Zillow…

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