Vol. 2, Iss. 5 | January 2021 RGV LEAD Ambassadors' Virtual Young Leaders Summit A summit for students, led by students! The RGV LEAD Ambassadors conducted the Young Leaders’ Summit on January 20th. The summit began at 9:00 a.m. and concluded at 12 noon. Abigail Gauna from Mission High School gave the opening remarks and led in the Pledge of Allegiance. She, then, introduced Luis Rodriguez to all the Ambassadors in attendance. Sophia Silva from Sharyland Pioneer High School gave Lizzy Putegnat, RGV LEAD Board chair, a warm welcome. Manuela Gracia, Los Fresnos High School, introduced the keynote [...]

Vol. 2, Iss. 5 | January 2021 Texas Regional Pathways Network Focuses on College and Career Advising RGV LEAD, Jobs for the Future, and The Texas Education Agency met with the Texas Regional Pathways Network (TPRN) districts to continue working on the TRPN grant. The focus of the meeting was to review which TRPN objectives have been covered since the grant was put into place and to revisit College and Career Advising. The Texas Education Agency has this to say about College and Career Advising. “High-quality professional school counseling is an integral component to a comprehensive education for [...]

Vol. 2, Iss. 3 | November 2020 Texas Regional Pathways Network Partners Meeting of the Minds Partnerships between 6 local education agencies, Jobs for the Future, TEA, and RGV LEAD continue to flourish and are going full steam ahead! The Local Education Agencies (LEA’s) consist of La Feria, Lasara, San Isidro, San Perlita, and Santa Rosa. These outstanding school districts are actively participating in the regional pathways in the areas of health science, renewable energy, and welding. The LEA’s will engage in the process of reverse mapping from industry to post-secondary to K-12. They will participate in the [...]

Vol. 2, Iss. 3 | November 2020 Plans Underway for the Annual RGV LEAD Regional Conference “Nor rain, nor snow, nor sleet, nor hail..nor the pandemic” can stop the RGV LEAD Annual Regional Conference! Members of the planning committee (pictured left) are busy securing guest speakers, employers, and school districts to participate in the upcoming January conference. The theme for the 2021 conference is: “Beyond 2020: The New Horizons”. Participants will be engaged in breakout sessions to learn how to excel during this pandemic period, engage in leadership activities, hear updates from the State, etc. They will be [...]

Vol 2, Iss. 3 | November 2020 RGV LEAD Hosts Regional Superintendents Meeting The RGV LEAD Annual Meeting and Superintendents Meeting video conference session was held on November 10th from 9:00 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. The superintendents and guests were welcomed by Luis Rodriguez, RGV LEAD Executive Director. He shared RGV LEAD ’s business and education partnership initiatives. Lizzy de la Garza Putegnat, Account Executive, Schneider Electric, and RGV LEAD President and Board Chair, gave the opening remarks. The invocation and Pledge of Allegiance were led by Albert G. Chronis, Project Manager for Noble Texas Builders, LLC, and [...]

Vol. 2, Iss. 3 | November 2020 Academy Leaders of the RGV Coalition Tour The Port of Brownsville “If the mountain will not come to Muhammad, then Muhammad must go to the mountain.” This was the case when the Academy Leaders Coalition of the Rio Grande Valley had planned on touring the Port of Brownsville, but couldn’t because of COVID. Undaunted by the virus, the Academy leaders were determined to learn more about the Port and the types of jobs available to Valley workers. Through the efforts of RGV LEAD, in conjunction with Eduardo A. Campirano, Port Director [...]

Vol. 2, Iss.3 | November 2020 RGV LEAD Ambassadors: LEADership in a Time of Change The RGV LEAD Ambassadors Fall Training workshop kicked off on November 12th focusing on the theme “Leadership in a Time of Change.” The virtual Zoom meeting was lead by Dr. Norma Salaiz and Janie Johnston Lopez. Returning Ambassadors and incoming Ambassadors reviewed the roles and expectations of serving as RGV LEAD Ambassadors and were then sent to chat rooms to share their feelings about this COVID-19 period. They discussed how the virus has impacted their school schedules, socializing with others, and extra-curricular activities, and [...]

Vol.2, Iss. 2 | October 2020 THANK YOU! THANK YOU to everyone who participated in creating this newsletter.  I am honored and blessed to have it [Vol. 2, Iss.2 Oct. 2020] dedicated to me!  Looking at the pictures, reading the comments, and thinking through all the memories has been a joy!  It is lovely hearing from people I admire, respect, and love.  Thank you for the blessing!  I have always believed we've been doing the Lord's work, and it's a joy to have been doing the work with all of you.  I also believe the best is [...]

Vol.2, Iss. 2 | October 2020 Education & Career EXPO in a Virtual World! Someone might ask, “Who moved my cheese?” as our traditional routines were turned upside down by the current pandemic and we had to shift gears to find new and creative ways to reach our goals. The Education & Career EXPO was no exception. In the past, students from across the RGV traveled to a designated venue and had the opportunity to mingle with business and post-secondary partners. This was not the case in 2020 due to the social distancing regulations. So RGV LEAD [...]