About UTRGV
Overview
The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley is a distributed university located in South Texas, with facilities along the Rio Grande Valley and near the Gulf of Mexico. UTRGV has campuses and off-campus research and teaching sites throughout the Rio Grande Valley including in Boca Chica Beach, Brownsville (formerly The University of Texas at Brownsville), Edinburg (formerly The University of Texas-Pan American), Harlingen, McAllen, Port Isabel, Rio Grande City, and South Padre Island. UTRGV, a comprehensive academic institution, enrolled its first class in the fall of 2015, and the School of Medicine welcomed its first class in the summer of 2016.
Mission
To transform the Rio Grande Valley, the Americas, and the world through an innovative and accessible educational environment that promotes student success, research, creative works, health and well-being, community engagement, sustainable development, and commercialization of university discoveries.
Vision
To be one of the nation’s leaders in higher education, its premier Hispanic-serving institution, and a highly engaged bilingual university, with exceptional educational, research, and creative opportunities that serve as catalysts for transformation in the Rio Grande Valley and beyond.
Values
Excellence
Transforming the Rio Grande Valley, the Americas, and the world requires weaving excellence throughout the fabric of the university and into the core of everything we do.
Diversity, Access, and Inclusion
Establishing an accessible educational environment requires that we cultivate and enhance the diverse, multicultural, and linguistic assets of our university and the Rio Grande Valley. UTRGV also promotes access, inclusion, and lifelong learning to ensure that all members of the university community have opportunities to succeed.
Inquiry, Discovery, and Creativity
Igniting, illuminating, and enhancing the talents and passions of the university community for open inquiry, discovery, and creativity inspire generations of lifelong scholars and artists who impact the Rio Grande Valley and beyond.
Engagement and Impact
Seeking to be a catalyst for transformation, the university integrates social justice, civic responsibility, innovation, and sustainable development in its endeavors. Such change is best undertaken through interdisciplinary and collaborative approaches across the university and with community, government, business, and non-profit partners.
Shared Governance
Participating in decision-making processes with integrity, trust, and respect is a responsibility of all UTRGV stakeholders. This requires an environment of shared governance, academic freedom, accountability and transparency, and open and honest communication.
Leadership
Instilling a sense of value and empowerment in all members of the university community is a fundamental responsibility of leaders at all levels and involves facilitating professional, intellectual, cultural, and personal growth.
Health and Well-being
Recognizing that our success is integrally related to the condition of our community, UTRGV strives to promote the health and well-being of its students, faculty, and staff, and create a healthy, equitable, and resilient community.
Core Priorities
Student Success
Support our students in achieving their academic goals in a timely manner and reaching their professional aspirations through excellent integrated learning experiences both in and out of the classroom.
Educational Opportunities
Strategically expand educational opportunities from pre-K to post-doc to increase experiential learning, research, creative endeavors, and community-engaged scholarship for people in the Rio Grande Valley and beyond.
Research Impacting the Rio Grande Valley and Beyond
Increase the number and productivity of faculty and students engaged in research and creative work that improves the lives of people in the RGV and beyond.
Health and Medical Education
Promote a culture of health and well-being for UTRGV and surrounding communities that employs a holistic approach to wellness, health, medical education, training, and research.
Community Engagement
Foster sustainable community-university relationships to enrich scholarship, research, teaching, learning, and creative activities while addressing critical societal issues and contributing to the public good.
Other Key Areas of Focus
Bilingual, Bicultural, Biliterate
Build UTRGV as a bilingual, bicultural, and biliterate university.
Campus Climate and Professional Development and Growth for Faculty and Staff
Cultivate a welcoming, inclusive, and nurturing climate for all faculty and staff.
Globalization
Foster a globally-connected university culture.
Sustainability
Institutionalize sustainability throughout the university and promote sustainability awareness in the community.
University History
The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) was created by the Texas Legislature in 2013 as the first major public university of the 21st century in Texas. This transformative initiative provided the opportunity to expand educational opportunities in the Rio Grande Valley, including a new School of Medicine, and made it possible for residents of the region to benefit from the Permanent University Fund – a public endowment contributing support to The University of Texas System and other institutions.