The Third Decade

Laredo Morning Times | lmtonline.com | Sunday, November 17, 2019 | E7 #%! &""$(),+*,' University-Kingsville adopted that mascot. In 1996, Sayavedra set up a cam- pus committee of students and a >@J >LB#9$I *@*K@&% $' N(A L >LB@ for the university, with Thompson chairing it. “(Sayavedra) didn’t want a mas- cot that any other college or even another high school had,” Thomp- son said. “He really wanted it to be unique, and it had to be gender neu- tral.” Thompson said the committee re- ceived about 180 recommendations from students and faculty, including the Bucks and the Lipan Apache. The LipanApache had traditional territory in Texas and northern Mex- ican states, including Tamaulipas. “What I wanted and what I pushed for were the Chupaca- bras, and that didn’t make the cut,” Thompson said. It came down to the Thunder, the Sun Blazers, the endangered species of Ocelots and $<@ P#%$A@";9% out of the six highly-consid- ered mascots. OL>N&;(; %#=- gested the Sun Blazers, and Thompson also M'L$@A $<@ ;A@L of the Texans, or the Tejanos. D( C'"@*K@& 1996, students and faculty B<'%@ $<@ P#%$- devils. “There was a sociology professor who raised all kinds of holy hell and wrote nu- merous emails complaining of the use of the word ‘devil,’” Thompson said. “Oh, she didn’t like that, but Sayavedra said ;$ JL% N(@F. Near change of leadership Things did not always go smooth- ly at TAMIU, especially in 1995 J<@( OL>N&;(; %#==@%$@A B<L(=;(= the university’s leadership over to the UT System as was suggested the previous decade. OL>N&;(; A&L>$@A 1@(L$@ !;99 88 with Bullock and Laredo leaders’ help. “Senate Bill 11 was a message to legislators that it was a priority for the lieutenant governor who always reserves the lowest bill numbers,” OL>N&;(; %L;AF Thompson said the bill infuriated many Laredoans, since many liked being under the Texas A&M Sys- tem. “So there was blood in the streets of Laredo, I mean the community was deeply divided,” Thompson said. “I personally didn’t care, but I thought we’re the only A&M Sys- tem on the border. There’s UT at Pan America, at UT El Paso, so I thought maybe it was better staying with A&M.” Thompson said the Aggies came back with all they had to make sure the university stayed under A&M. “I think the Senator really un- derestimated the Aggies, because those Aggies are like an army out $<@&@ L(A $<@I,&@ "@&I ;(M#@($;L9H. he said. The bill passed in the Senate, but Rep. Irma Rangel of Kingsville :;99@A ;$ ;( $<@ E'#%@H OL>N&;(; %L;AF “As a result of our effort, howev- er, A&M regents worked with us to resolve issues and were impressed by the strong support local alumni expressed for our hometown uni- "@&%;$IH. OL>N&;(; %L;AF 0+@ (@"@& had that problem again. Today, I am delighted that the university is part of the A&M System and that we un- equivocally have demonstrated its value not only to Laredo and to the region but also to our great state and, indeed, to our nation.” Thompson said he believed Zaf- N&;(; <LA *'&@ ;(M#@(B@ J;$< -/ ? especially being an alumna – but in the end, the transfer did not work. “They were really splitting hairs, but they couldn’t pull it off,” he said. Ringing in the new Millennium As the 90s came to a close, ap- proaching was the 2000s era of Y2K and the Bill Clinton presidency. TA- MIU boomed in student population and saw its campus expand across what was once a dry patch of land. When the university opened as L( '>NB;L9 >'#&GI@L& ;(%$;$#$;'( ;( 8225H ;$ <LA L 73) ;(B&@L%@ >&'* $<@ previous fall. In 1999, TAMIU broke its Fall enrollment mark with 3,200 stu- A@($%H L( ;(B&@L%@ '> 4F6) '"@& $<@ previous record enrollment of 3,001 students. Jennett would retire in 2001, and to this day said working at TAMIU during the 90s was one of the best experiences ever. “I couldn’t think of a place I en- joyed more, and I’ve worked at a lot of universities,” Jennett said.” The opportunities that university has given the people – old and young – in Laredo is extraordinary. And all you have to do is look at it.” <#C '#CE >%D#C'4?>#% #% 8/.65,A 0*?@ 4%%>;ECA4C&- D#77#( 81/.65 #% <4$E3##9- 6%A?4BC4'- 8(>??EC- F#=8=3E- 2>%9E"6% 4%" :!#?>D&- =AE ?@E @4A@?4B )8/.650* 4%" ;>A>? ?@E A$@##7,A (E3A>?E 4? 0*+?4'>=+E"=+