Samuel Villarreal, orientation leader (left), helps incoming freshman Adrian Escobar, during Roundup last Friday on the Edinburg campus. FATIMA GAMEZ LOPEZ/THE RIDER PHOTOS
The UTRGV Fall 2021 semester is booked with in-person, on-campus events, including Best Week Ever, the Distinguished Speaker Series, drive-in movies, UTRGV Madness and more.
Best Week Ever started Sunday and continues until Sept. 2. Events will take place in person, virtually or hybrid and will be hosted on one campus with watch parties. Students interested in joining watch parties can keep an eye on the Student Activities V Link page and its social media accounts for updates.
Student IDs will be checked. Students can go to utrgv.edu/bestweekever to see scheduled events.
“[Student Activities is] planning for everything to come back this fall semester,” said Cindy Mata-Vasquez, director of Student Activities.
Students can also find in-person Info Depots from 8:30 to 9:30 a.m. today and Tuesday at the Student Union buildings on the Edinburg and Brownsville campuses. Students can stop by to pick up snacks, campus resource flyers, maps or ask for directions.
Info Depots After Dark are from 7 to 8 p.m. today and Tuesday, via Zoom, where attendees interact and play games with student leaders.
Picnic with the President is from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. today in the Ballroom on the Edinburg campus and at the same time in the PlainsCapital Bank El Gran Salón Tuesday on the Brownsville campus. Free hamburgers, chips and drinks will be served, according to Naomi Valdez, a program coordinator for Student Activities.
UTRGV Day will be from noon to 3 p.m. Wednesday in the Ballroom on the Edinburg campus and in the PlainsCapital Bank El Gran Salón on the Brownsville campus, according to Karen Dorado, director of special programs & community relations.
On Wednesday, there will be a Spirit Rally-Vaquero Roundup from noon to 1 p.m. in the UTRGV Fieldhouse in Edinburg hosted by Student Activities and the UTRGV Spirit Program. The event will also be available as a watch party, Mata-Vasquez said.
The Stomp will take place from 7 to 9 p.m. Thursday in the UTRGV Baseball Stadium on the Edinburg campus. Students who cannot attend the event in Edinburg can view it as a watch party on the Brownsville campus at the PlainsCapital Bank El Gran Salón or on YouTube at home, Valdez said.
Bidi Bidi Banda, a Selena cover band, will perform at The Stomp.
“We’re really excited because they have never traveled to South Texas,” Valdez said. “This would be their first UTRGV concert.”
To RSVP for The Stomp, students can register through V Link at https://utrgv.campuslabs.com/engage/event/7188499.
The Campus Activities Board is also hosting a drive-in movie Tuesday from 8:30 to 11 p.m. in parking lot E-32 and will be showing “Grease.” The event will take place Friday at the same time in Brownsville in parking lot B-3 and will be showing the same film.
It will be a traditional drive-in where attendees stay in their vehicles, Mata-Vasquez said.
Students can go to utrgv.edu/vlink to find more activities, not only hosted by Student Activities but by campus partners and student organizations.
Student Activities will continue to host virtual and hybrid events to allow students who do not have the opportunity to be on campus to participate.
The Brownsville campus can look forward to hosting the first distinguished speaker of the year on Sept. 21. Mata-Vasquez said the speaker will be announced soon.
Cindy Sauceda, a biomedical sciences junior, said attending UTRGV events makes her feel like part of a family.
“I have part of my classes online and part of my classes here at the school,” Sauceda said. “So, I think it’s good for us to come back to school to know people and, for those who are just getting into college, to get to know that experience and know more people.”
