Students speak on UTRGV Brownsville ceremonies being moved

BROWNSVILLE, Texas ( ValleyCentral ) — The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley announced it will be moving its graduation ceremonies held at the Brownsville campus.

Students in Cameron County will now have to travel to Edinburg for their graduation ceremony. The university says the decision all comes down to student feedback but some students view the change of venue as another stressor.

Over 70% of Spring 2024 graduates at UTRGV’s Brownsville Campus voted in favor of holding an indoor ceremony at Bert Ogden Arena. However, not all students were happy with the changes.

“Going like an hour and a half or two-hour drive is not realistic for a whole family that might have toddlers or a big family in general of 10 people,” said student Yamen Al-Qudah. “It’s ridiculous to try to take it over there.”

Al-Qudah says he does not support the idea when it comes to having to travel farther for the event but understands how convenient it would be to hold the ceremonies inside an indoors facility.

“I just don’t want to deal with the humidity, the rain, or the weather in general, so being in an AC facility like the Bert Ogden Arena I just thought it was simpler for my family,” Al-Qudah said.

Other students like Jacquelin Gonzalez think the same.

“Especially, in the mornings when they usually do the graduations in the morning it is very hot and humid,” Gonzalez said.

Gonzalez and student Daila Escobedo see why it would be reasonable to do it in Edinburg as it has the infrastructure to hold such events. Its 2028 freshmen class voted over 80% in favor of an indoor facility like the Bert Ogden Arena in the survey.

Some students worry about others who may not have vehicles.

“I know a lot of people wouldn’t have and be able to go on their own, so there probably would have to be more transportation with the school,” Claudia Thomas said.

UTRGV’s Vice President for University Marketing and Communications Patrick Gonzales says the university will be providing charter buses for anybody who needs transportation back and forth free of charge. This includes rides for the students’ families, friends and all those who want to attend the graduation.

Gonzales says complaints and police reports of people fainting due to heat-related illnesses during the Brownsville ceremonies also factored into the decision.

“The last three commencements were delayed, or we had to postpone commencement,” Gonzales said. “We had to postpone it and reschedule it because of rain and the last two semesters were just really hot and made it really uncomfortable for not only our students wearing their black robes but also their families who were who were sitting out there in the open with no shade.”

Gonzales adds that they also considered options like holding the ceremonies at an indoor facility in Brownsville, South Padre Island, or Harlingen, but none of them could hold its projected crowd numbers.

According to the university website, holding both ceremonies at the Bert Ogden Arena will save the university approximately $300,000, which would be redirected in the form of student aid or scholarships.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KVEO-TV.