Texas Border Business
By Roberto Hugo González / Texas Border Business
EDINBURG, Texas — South Texas ISD World Scholars Theatre Arts students received an opportunity to learn directly from a professional actor when Rio Grande Valley native Valente Rodriguez visited the campus to share his experience and work with aspiring performers.
During the visit, Rodriguez spoke with students about his career, answered their questions, and led acting exercises, giving students the chance to receive guidance from an actor whose professional work spans decades.
South Texas ISD described the experience as a special day for its Theatre Arts students and thanked Rodriguez for sharing his knowledge with the next generation of performers.
The visit carried additional significance because Rodriguez’s path to the entertainment industry began in South Texas.
Born and raised in the Rio Grande Valley, Rodriguez attended the former University of Texas-Pan American before moving to Los Angeles in 1988 to pursue acting. Biographical information published for a recent film festival appearance says Rodriguez grew up in a family of migrant farmworkers and helped put himself through college by performing children’s theater in South Texas.
Rodriguez went on to build a long career in film and television. He is widely recognized for portraying Ernesto “Ernie” Cardenas on the ABC sitcom George Lopez, appearing throughout the series’ six-season run.
His film credits include Blood In Blood Out, Mi Familia, Erin Brockovich, Deep Blue Sea, Volcano, and McFarland, USA. His television work includes appearances in ER, The X-Files, The Mentalist, and other productions. He also was a regular on Happily Divorced alongside Fran Drescher.
For World Scholars students, however, the visit went beyond hearing about Rodriguez’s credits. The actor worked with them on their craft, creating a direct connection between classroom theatre instruction and the experience of someone who has made acting his profession.
That connection is especially relevant for young performers in the Rio Grande Valley. Rodriguez once studied and performed in the same region before pursuing opportunities in Los Angeles, making his career an example of how theatrical training in South Texas can lead to professional work beyond the Valley.
The campus visits also gave students an opportunity to ask questions about an industry they may eventually consider entering themselves.
South Texas ISD World Scholars praised Rodriguez for taking time to work with its students, saying its Lions were glad to welcome him to campus.
For the young actors in the room, the experience offered something a textbook cannot easily duplicate: the chance to learn directly from a South Texas performer who turned his early involvement in theatre into a long professional career.
