TAMIU Annual Report 2020

NEWS DESPITE PANDEMIC CHALLENGE, TAMIU SETS ENROLLMENT RECORD Forecasters had predicted Fall enrollments would plunge as col- leges anduniversities guardedly reopened consistentwithCOVID-19 Pandemic restrictions. Indeed, most national enrollments dipped, on average 2.5%. But at TAMIU, students, faculty and staff have driven an historic Fall enrollment—the highest todate, to 8,525 students. TAMIUpresi- dent Dr. PabloArenaz saidhe attributes the Fall gain to three factors. “First, and foremost, an absolute full-campus commitment to making sure students could safely progress via four course deliveries flexible to student needs andCenters for Diseases Control, State, A&M System and City health guidance. “Second, student resilience and faculty innovation. TAMIU stu- dents are laser-focused on realizing their educational goals. Faculty innovation in teaching, outreach and research supports students’ goals, making them attainable. “Third, the University’s momentum and growth continued. We launched three new degree programs: Computer Engineering, Pe- troleum Engineering and Public Health. “What this Fall 2020 enrollment affirms is that despite extraordi- nary challenges, our administration, faculty, staff and students have respondedwith a robust affirmationof and commitment todelivering our higher education legacy and mission,” he concluded. AT TAMIU STUDENTS TAKE CLASSES LED BY CONGRESSMAN CUÉLLAR Students don’t often get to take a class ledby a Congressman, but at TAMIU, they experienced just that this Fall. CongressmanHenry Cuéllar (’82), U.S. Representative for Texas’ 28thCongressional District, led a newhybrid course for undergraduate or graduate credit, titled, “Government Appropriations: Introduction to the United States Federal Budget.” TAMIU president Dr. Pablo Arenaz said he had long broached the possibility of Cong. Cuéllar teaching a course, but scheduling had been an expected challenge. “Congressman Cuéllar has always been keen to join us for this sort of opportunity, but the challenges of scheduling and the life of a Congressman can be quite complex.We’re excited that wewere able to secure him for this Fall semester. Clearly, there were additional challenges with our ongoing response to the Pandemic, but Cong. Cuéllar was committed to helping us to provide our students with remarkable insight. For a course about government appropriations, you can’t get a better source than the only TexasDemocrat on theU.S. House Appropriations Committee. His superior educational attain- ments and decades of governmental experience certainly provided a positive role model for all students,” Dr. Arenaz said. Course discussion points were grouped under a general umbrella asserting that the federal budget, comprisedof spending and revenue of the federal government, takes a primary role in governance in a politically-charged environment. Pre-Pandemic photo Pre-Pandemic photo 21