Agreement to benefit research and training among students and faculty
Texas Border Business
McALLEN, TEXAS – South Texas College will make the most out of new relationships with partners south of the border through the exchange of student talent, quality programs, and its world-class faculty, according to STC President Dr. Shirley A. Reed.
STC and Universidad Tamaulipeca have signed a general collaboration agreement to create tools for training through the use of a unique bi-national partnership at least three years in the making.
At a special signing ceremony on Jan. 24, Dr. Reed and Universidad Tamaulipeca President Dr. Oscar W. Aguilar Rodriguez formalized a partnership where each institution agreed to begin working together on projects related to research, conferences and new educational opportunities.
“They have associate degrees, technical degrees, they offer nursing and allied health programs, and are very interested in a language institute,” Dr. Reed said about her initial visit with representatives from the institution. “In the MOU, we also agreed to work together and sponsor binational conferences so their faculty and students can participate. It is so important for the region that we have these relationships.
“It’s important for the economic development of the region because we have quality programs that we can share with them and they have outstanding faculty with unique expertise they can share with us,” she said. “We can work together, we can benefit, and we can learn from each other.”
Both institutions have sufficient capacity to promote plans and programs that lead to an improvement of Higher Education in both countries. Activities will include student exchange, faculty exchange, video conference, and distance lectures.
“They are here because they are interested in working with us to include the quality of education they deliver to their students in Reynosa, Rio Bravo, and Matamoros,” said STC Dean of Business, Public Safety and Technology Mario Reyna. “We have been talking to them for about three years now and most of their degrees are very similar to the things we do, and that’s one of the reasons we are very interested.
“We want to work with them because if we can get their students and even our students to graduate with two degrees, that will make them more valuable to industry in Reynosa and McAllen,” Reyna said.
Universidad Tamaulipeca is comprised of three campuses in Reynosa, Rio Bravo, and Matamoros. The university says it is dedicated to the training of professionals to develop the skills required to meet the challenges of international globalization, encouraging innovative capacity and competitiveness, generating commitment to continuous improvement and consolidating leading professionals, entrepreneurs, and modifiers of organizations in Mexico.
“This is an agreement that will allow us to establish an exchange of ideas between our students,” said Dr. Aguilar. “Looking at the future after this event, I think the most important thing is focusing on student preparation and eventually establishing a dual process between our two institutions.”
