“Looking Back, Honoring Legacy”

EDINBURG, Texas – From now until Sept. 17, the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley is hosting an exhibit called, The University Archives: Looking Back, Honoring Legacy.

Starting at the library at the Edinburg campus, the exhibit presents the university’s history and legacy. The exhibit also honors notable alumni, faculty, sports achievements and its presidents.

Lisa Huerta, the exhibit’s coordinator, said, “The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley has a history that is nearly 100 years old. We started as Edinburg College ([1927 – 1933)], which was founded as part of the Edinburg school district.” Therefore, according to Huerta, the exhibition is “about our legacy, it’s about promoting our UTRGV Library- Special Collections and Archives department. It shows what we offer to our students, staff, faculty and to the community.” 

She added that the Special Collections & University Archives also “holds primary source [original] and secondary source materials for our UTRGV community to learn more about our unique materials and collections relating to the history and culture of the Rio Grande Valley region of South Texas and Northeastern Mexico.” 

Huerta also talked about the four different displays at the library and what they represent. The alumni exhibition recognizes the achievements of notable students. For instance, Sen. Ruben Hinojosa, a native of the Rio Grande Valley, became our U.S. Representative for Texas’s 15th Congressional District, from 1997 to 2017. The president’s office exhibition focuses on the different leaders of the university throughout the years. One example is our inaugural UTRGV president, Dr. Guy Bailey, who cultivated the Vaquero culture at our institution. The sports exhibition focuses on the university’s coaching legacy and those who have passed away but are not forgotten. This exhibit features baseball coach Alfred “Al” Ogletree (1930 – 2019) who was known for making 13 College World Series appearances.”

Additionally, Huerta said she hopes the exhibit “encourages students to research the history of the surrounding communities. As a department, we would like for our UTRGV community to learn the legacy of the university, our alumni, our university presidents and our athletics coaches who made a difference and had a great impact on our lives.” 

For more information on the The University Archives: Looking Back, Honoring Legacy exhibit, visit the UTRGV Edinburg library’s lobby and UTRGV Brownsville library’s third floor, where it will be on.