UTRGV moves Brownsville classes online amid construction delays

 UTRGV is temporarily moving Brownsville engineering and visual arts courses online after buildings expected to open for the fall semester were not ready for students when classes began Aug. 26.

A sign posted outside the modular buildings construction site stated that classes scheduled for the spaces have been moved online. 

An email a student provided to Pulse magazine from Can Saygin, interim provost and executive vice president for Academic Affairs, stated classes scheduled in the Visual Arts Complex on the Brownsville campus will be online due to the delays in renovations. 

Patrick Gonzales, vice president of UTRGV Marketing and Communications, told Pulse in an Aug. 20 interview the engineering buildings were expected to open for the first day of classes. Jeffrey Ward, dean of the College of Fine Arts, also said the first phase of the visual arts complex was also expected to open for the first day of classes.

The additions come as the university works to address the needs of engineering students in Cameron County, many of whom commute between UTRGV’s campuses, by bringing upper-level civil and mechanical engineering coursework to Brownsville.

According to a May report from Brownsville’s Task Force of the Future, a partnership between UTRGV and the city, nearly 30% of students traveling to Edinburg from Cameron County ZIP codes were engineering majors.

Gonzales said expanding engineering opportunities in Brownsville became a priority through discussions held by the task force.

“Prioritizing the expansion of engineering was a direct reflection of the Task Force of the Future between UTRGV and the city of Brownsville,” Gonzales said. “As that committee met last academic year, we quickly made the decision to expand specifically civil and mechanical engineering.”

The machine shop remains under construction and is expected to be completed during the fall semester before becoming operational in Spring 2027. Gonzales said the facility will house new equipment that is still being delivered.

“Even though Brownsville is my main campus because I live in Brownsville, I have not seen that campus in like two years,” Michelle Alcala, a mechanical engineering senior, said.

For Alcala, who lives near Los Fresnos, most of her engineering classes have been offered in Edinburg.

“The commute from where I live, near Los Fresnos, to the Brownsville campus is already about 25 minutes,” Alcala said. “I’d rather do that than spend around three hours commuting.”

Alcala said bringing more engineering courses to Brownsville could benefit students who have struggled with the commute between campuses.

“I’ve had multiple friends who gave up on the Edinburg bus and ended up moving to Edinburg just to continue their classes because everything is over there,” she said. “People would rather move to a whole different city just for class, even though there is already a campus in their city.”

The modular buildings and renovated spaces represent an immediate expansion, but Gonzales said the university is also looking toward a larger, long-term engineering presence in Brownsville.

Gonzales added UTRGV is planning an Engineering, Science and Innovation Facility and is currently identifying a location for the project.

The future facility would build on the current expansion as UTRGV continues working toward bringing more academic opportunities to the Brownsville campus.

“This is the university and the city coming together to make sure that you have more academic opportunities, that you have more opportunities for success,” Gonzales said.

As of publication of this story, Gonzales had not responded to additional requests for an interview regarding the change to temporary online classes.