Board Approves New Name for New School: UT-Rio Grande Valley

The University of Texas System regents on Thursday unanimously approved a name for the new university being created in South Texas. It will be called the University of Texas-Rio Grande Valley.

The new institution is the result of a merging of the University of Texas at Brownsville, the University of Texas-Pan American, and the Regional Academic Health Center, which is being transformed into a medical school. The new university with the medical school was approved by lawmakers earlier this year.

The system announced six potential names in November and sought input from the public.

In a presentation to the board on Thursday, Randa Safady, the system's vice chancellor for external relations, said that 57 percent of respondents supported naming the institution UT-Rio Grande Valley.

The second most popular suggestion was the University of Texas-South. It was followed in popularity by a write-in option: The University of Texas-Pan American.

Alumni of the Edinburg campus and some lawmakers launched an eleventh-hour effort to keep the UT-Pan American name, noting that it would be appropriate for an institution that spanned the entire region.

Ultimately, though, the board opted for a new moniker for the new institution.