TAMIU Named Recipient of Historic $40 Million Gift
A $40 Million gift to Texas A&M International University (TAMIU) is one of the largest in higher education history in South Texas, and certainly the largest in the 50-year history of the University. TAMIU, a Hispanic Serving Institution, was the only HSI in Texas selected for the gift.
The unrestricted gift from MacKenzie Scott, philanthropist and author, was announced online Tuesday, Dec. 15, 2020.
TAMIU president Dr. Pablo Arenaz said the gift is a defining moment for the University.
“To say we are amazed seems an understatement. This will change lives, make dreams real and change higher education here for generations to come. We are told that this selection was based on the transformative work we do here, and the inspiring success of our students. This will advance that work, and that transformation,” Dr. Arenaz said.
TAMIU’s president said the University has long recognized its ability to advance the social mobility of its students, measurably increasing their earning and quality of life for themselves and their families.
In turn, TAMIU graduates go on to lead lives of meaning and substance in the communities they call home, he noted, adding, “While we recognize the enormous generosity that will continue to make this possible, we also view this as an affirmation that our mission is being delivered. We can now move forward boldly with a measure of security and support.”
Arenaz said the University will meet with on and off campus leadership and advisors to help map out a comprehensive plan to maximize the gift.
“In the New Year, we will convene to map out a brighter future for TAMIU. In this time of such tremendous adversity and challenge, we hope that this news will continue to inspire hope and appreciation for the power of giving and kindness to change the world,” he concluded.
A Member of The Texas A&M University System, Texas A&M International University (TAMIU) is a primarily Hispanic-serving, State-assisted university founded in 1970. Its 300-acre campus is located in northeast Laredo on former ranchland.
The campus is home to a diverse enrollment of over 8,500 students from 31 countries and 28 US states. TAMIU offers 95+ transformative undergraduate, graduate and doctoral degrees in the arts and sciences, business, education and nursing. As its name affirms, the University maintains a special focus on developing an international academic agenda for the State of Texas. The University’s 29,000+ graduates lead lives of change and impact around the world.
TAMIU is the second highest ranked Texas regional university in US News and World Report 2020’s Regional Universities West and has been cited by Georgetown University as 16th in the nation for Return on Investment. Its ability to dramatically impact its graduates’ social economic mobility has been praised by Stanford University’s Equality of Opportunity Project, the American Council on Education and CollegeNet.
For the fifth year in row, TAMIU was ranked in the Top Ten of Washington Monthly’s Best Bang for the Buck Southern Colleges 2019 College Rankings. The University’s gifted global faculty helped it earn a national ranking of Eighth among “Colleges with the Greatest Racial and Ethnic Diversity Among Faculty Members” by the Chronicle of Higher Education. Most recently, online job search platform Zippia ranked TAMIU fifth in its recent national Top 10 Total Package Colleges ranking…the only Texas university so ranked.
The University celebrated its milestone 50th Anniversary in 2020, with year-long events organized around the Anniversary theme, “A World of Difference.”
Additional information is available at tamiu.edu
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