FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 25, 2012
The transition teams of Texas Southmost College (TSC) and the University of Texas System (UT System) met on June 25, 2012, to discuss the important business of real property, facilities, furniture, fixtures and equipment.
At that meeting, Dr. Lily F. Tercero, President of TSC, expressed that “the TSC Board of Trustees is committed to ensuring the successful completion of the transition process and looks forward to having two very prestigious educational institutions in our community.”
She stated that “TSC embraces the concept of an educational village, as proposed by the UT System.” According to Dr. Tercero, “It is a financially viable and student-friendly concept that would entail the sharing of certain student-related services.” Additionally, this collaboration would allow TSC and UTB students continued access to existing facilities.
Dr. Tercero did point out that, “At first glance, some operations might be viewed as viable candidates for consolidation or may appear to be redundant, but in actuality, it may be necessary to keep these operations separate for various reasons. For example, the mission of the community college is different from that of a university. Each institution has been purposely designed to serve different populations and different community needs. As a result, service needs and program offerings at both institutions differ, as do reporting requirements at the local, state and federal levels.”
According to Dr. Tercero, “Although the UT System has expressed interest in purchasing certain buildings and land, TSC sincerely believes their proposed concept and educational space requirements can be fully accomplished by leasing rather than selling TSC property.” “It is too early to determine the level of growth that will occur at TSC and UTB; therefore, the TSC Board of Trustees believes that it is fiscally prudent and in the best interest of the College District and UTB to retain the flexibility of a leasing program at this time.” While the Board of Trustees is committed to ensuring the long-term viability of TSC, it is also strongly committed to assisting UTB as it moves to becoming operationally independent from the partnership. “TSC is ready to work with UTB to ensure that it has the space it needs to implement its academic program as both institutions move to becoming operationally independent in fall 2013,” she stated.
TSC was initially established in 1926 and entered into a partnership with the University of Texas at Brownsville in 1991. In early 2011, the UT System Board of Regents and the TSC Board of Trustees voted to terminate the partnership. TSC is scheduled to become operationally independent by fall 2013 and separately accredited by August 31, 2015.
Contact: Kim Sanchez
956-882-6538
[email protected]