Vela Announces $1.8 Million in Education grants for South Texas Colleges

U.S. Representative Filemon Vela, D-Brownsville, announced today that the U.S. Department of Education awarded Talent Search Program grants to the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV), Texas A&M University-Kingsville, Coastal Bend College and Texas State Technical College(TSTC). The grant funds will support academic, career and financial counseling for students from low-income families to encourage them to graduate from high school and pursue post-secondary education.

“These federal grants will give thousands of high school students from disadvantaged backgrounds access to much-needed resources and higher education opportunities,” said U.S. Rep. Filemon Vela. “It is imperative that we do all we can to ensure students have access to a good education, and I applaud these universities for their commitment to help students from all economic backgrounds earn a college degree.”

These awards represent only one year of commitment from the U.S. Department of Education, but it is expected that the Talent Search Program will continue to receive support for a total of five years for each of these recipients. One of the grants announced today will be used by UTRGV to provide assistance to disadvantaged students in Willacy County, the first Talent Search funds the university has been awarded to support students in this area.

Talent Search Grants have been awarded in the following amounts:

• UTRGV: $434,400 for students in Hidalgo County
• UTRGV: $240,000 for students in Willacy County
• TAMUK: $240,000
• TSTC in Harlingen: $265,919
• Coastal Bend College-Beeville: $322,080
• Coastal Ben College-Alice: $295,679

Vela Announces $1.8 Million in Education grants for South Texas Colleges