The State of the Rio Grande Valley Conference was held Sept. 20 on the Edinburg campus and focused on the census, voting and job opportunities.
The conference began with encouraging words from Moises “Moe” Vela Jr., a lawyer who is a founding partner, president and CEO of the Vela Group LLC, a corporate, business and organizational development consulting firm, according to its website.
“I think it’s just amazing to see the students of the Rio Grande Valley putting on conferences like this,” Vela said. “It’s so important to inform, empower and inspire the students here at the university to get involved and to lead.”
The floor then opened to the “Our Voice: Regional Research, U.S. Census 2020 and Beyond,” a panel discussion that informed students about the importance of completing the 2020 census and how it can impact the community.
“It’s very important to complete the census as fully as they can because, with accurate numbers, that means more funding for the Valley,” said Natasha Altema-McNeely, an assistant professor of political science and panelist. “The census is very important. … Fundamentally, it’s a tool to get the population count, including citizens and noncitizens. … Having an accurate count, again, will only bring positive outcomes for the Valley.”
Other panelists included U.S. Census Bureau Partnership Specialist Albert Morales and Ericka Reyna, assistant chief of staff for the Hidalgo County Judge’s office.
Next, “The Road to 2020: Legislative Updates and Voting” was discussed among state legislators. State Sen. Juan “Chuy” Hinojosa (D-McAllen) and state Reps. Terry Canales (D-Edinburg), Eddie Lucio III (D-Brownsville) and Armando “Mando” Martinez (D-Weslaco) answered several questions about the border wall, immigration and their opinion about the upcoming elections.
“Yes, we do have some challenges here in the border area,” Hinojosa said. “Human trafficking is a big issue, and, yes, we do have some problems with drug smuggling, and, yes, we do have issues with all the cartels. In my opinion … we will not have a change … until we’ve changed our leadership.”
Next, Lucio shared his thoughts on the importance of next year’s election.
“I truly believe that this upcoming election is the most important in our country’s history. … It is a very scary time. … South Texas has had the worst voter percentage turnout compared to any other area in the state for as long as I can remember.”
The last panel, titled “Career Impact: Expanding your Horizons,” brought guest speakers in diverse professions: Kassandra Aleman, a deputy organizing director at the Texas Democratic Party; Rogelio Chanes, assistant athletic director for development at UTRGV; Gilbert Garza Reyes, manager of Teach for America; and Rick Garza, a staff attorney for the Texas Civil Rights Project. The guests spoke about their jobs, how to properly apply to one and the importance of self-care when dealing with stress.
Cindy Mata-Vasquez, director of Student Activities and an organizer of the event, shared her thoughts on the conference.
“I think this is a big initiative,” Mata-Vasquez said. “We definitely want to see how we can grow and increase our presence not only here at the university but also make our presence count in our region, in the Rio Grande Valley.”
Alyssa Guajardo, chair of the State of the Rio Grande Valley Conference and an exercise science senior, said, “I think it’s really nice hosting the conference because you learn so much from it and it’s really beneficial. I feel like in the future you are going to need skills like these. … Like, you learn a lot of good skills from it. I am very happy with everything that the speakers said and I am hoping that students really learned from it.”
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