The Annette Strauss Institute for Civic Life at the University of Texas at Austin invites all college and university students from the Rio Grande Valley to its first conference at UTRGV, scheduled from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Friday in the Student Academic Center on the Edinburg campus.
The institute will host The State of the Rio Grande Valley conference in an effort to inform students about politics, the importance of community and political engagement, career development, Valley leaders and the current state of the region.
“We’re going to talk about border relations, DACA, and the future of undocumented students in the Valley,” said Giovanni Rosas Escobedo, a political science senior, Texas Civic Ambassador and conference chair.
Other topics include the border wall, NAFTA and students.
Some speakers include current and former Mexico and United States officials, professors, journalists and individuals appointed to office.
“The Annette Strauss Institute [for Civic Life] … wants to see the future … [and] keep having these conferences here in the Valley on different topics,” Rosas Escobedo said. “… They want to expand the conference here … and see how students react and what can be done different in the future.”
The conference will be student led and 120 students are expected to attend.
Organizations, such as the Association of Latino Professionals for America RGV (ALPFA), Political Science Association, Beta Lambda Chapter of Phi Iota Alpha Fraternity Inc., Alpha Beta Chapter of Kappa Delta Chi, Rotaract Club, Student Government Association and the Pre-Law Society have contributed by helping organize the conference.
“It’s our civic duty to know what’s going on and that way we can make change,” ALPFA President Jose Javier Mireles said. “I promise you, you will learn a lot. A lot of people with like-minded points of view will be there. … We highly encourage you to go.”
