Texas Community Bank Provides TAMIU with $1 Million Endowed Gift

Business majors at Texas A&M International University (TAMIU) will be the direct beneficiaries of a generous $1 million endowed gift from Texas Community Bank announced Thursday at TAMIU.

The gift creates the Texas Community Bank Endowed Scholarship Fund for businessmajors at the University’s A. R. Sanchez, Jr. School of Business and is available to students beginning this fall.

Douglas G. Macdonald, president and CEO of Texas Community Bank, said the Bank’s gift is an investment in the students of South Texas.

“As our name proudly proclaims, we are a community-based bank and believe in investing in the community that we serve. The Texas Community Bank Endowed Scholarship Fund will help to encourage the education and careers of our next generation of business leaders and researchers. We are confident that this investment in their futures is an investment in all our futures,” Macdonald said.

TAMIU president Dr. Ray Keck lauded Texas Community Bank’s generosity.

“At a time when resources are increasingly scarce, our hearts are lifted by Laredo private sector philanthropy once again asserting a leadership role in our students’ success. TAMIU students are fortunate to have the visionary partnership of Texas Community Bank to helprealize their higher education and future business careers. We would encourage others to join in the leadership philanthropy model that Texas Community Bank and others share,” Dr. Keck said.

In order to qualify for the scholarship, students must meet a variety of criteria, including residency in South Texas (Webb County and adjacent counties); demonstrate need, merit or academic standing; seek an undergraduate, graduate or doctoral degree in business, and maintain a GPA of 3.0 or better to sustain the scholarship award. Students who receive the scholarship will be known as Texas Community Bank Scholars.

Texas Community Bank (TCB) is a locally owned and operated, community-oriented financial institution with its heart and roots embedded along the South Texas-México border. TCB is a wholly owned subsidiary of Vision Bancshares, Inc., a one-bank holding company founded in 2003 by Macdonald and a group of local investors familiar with the Laredo market. The group founded the bank with the belief that a great opportunity existed for a community bank that emphasizes personal service.

Since its inception, TCB has built a stable core deposit and loan base in its primaryhome of Laredo as well as in San Antonio, Somerset, Brownsville, McAllen and Del Rio. Its business success is attributed to hiring exceptional local bankers in each of its markets, assembling teams of experienced and knowledgeable industry professionals specializing in all facets of banking including deposit and lending, international, investment, technology and operations.

TCB has grown to $982MM dollars in assets in seven short years, attributed to offering competitive products and services that meet the financial needs of the communities it serves.

For additional information on the Texas Community Bank Endowed Scholarship Fund, please contact Candy Hein, vice president for Institutional Advancement, at 956.326.GIVE (4483), email candy.hein@tamiu.edu, click on http://www.tamiu.edu/adminis/vpia/ or visit offices in the Sue and Radcliffe Killam Library, room 261.

University office hours are Monday-Friday from 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. Additional TAMIU information is available at tamiu.edu and on the University’s Facebook, Twitter and YouTube accounts.

Journalists who need additional information or help with media requests and interviews should contact the Office of Public Relations, Marketing and Information Services at prmis@tamiu.edu