(07-19-2020 11:15 AM)Bobcat2013 Wrote:  

(07-19-2020 11:10 AM)edinburger Wrote:  

(07-18-2020 11:24 PM)Hilldog Wrote:  

(07-18-2020 06:04 PM)edinburger Wrote:  

(07-18-2020 02:54 PM)Itinerant Texan Wrote:  ...
That's right. Probably some activity still there by way of a "center", but the main campus is now in Edinburg.
....

I work at UTRGV and calling Edinburg the "main campus" gets you called in to your supervisor's office. Officially we're all equal, because people in Brownsville get upset otherwise. Brownsville students, Brownsville faculty, Brownsville politicians, and most especially the Brownsville-based legislators that get to vote on our budget.

Of course off the record you're completely right. Edinburg has more students, more facilities, more faculty with base offices there, and more programs offered. Prior to the merger there was no doubt that UTPA was bigger, more stable, and better academically than UTB, although neither one was top tier if we're being honest about it.

So, there are still classes being held in Brownsville? How far apart are the two campuses?

In the LA/OC area, you have Cal Poly Pomona and Cal St. Fullerton that are 15-20 miles apart. Cal St. LA and CP Pomona are also about 20 miles from each other. But, none of those campuses are thinking about combining.

67 miles Edinburg to Brownsville. It was an idea driven by people from outside the valley (a) who didn't realize it's not really commuting distance, (b) were taken in by consultants who kept saying location doesn't matter because "Internet", and (c ) didn't really give a **** about us anyway.

TAMUCC and TAMUK combining might make for interesting fantasy conference realignments, but it would be bad for the students and the community. Don't do it.

Wow I had no idea Edinburg and Brownsville were that far apart. I guess I just assumed that since the schools merged that they were pretty close to each other. Definitely doesnt really seem feasible to merge schools unless theyre within 10 miles or so.

How had the merger gone in your opinion? Do the students and locals still the schools as individuals?

Badly. You aren't going to find many people who were at UTB or UTPA who think it was good idea, all the boosters are people imported to run the "new" university.

You can't reassign personal loyalties and commitments - at least not the kind that are worth anything - with an executive memo telling people to be loyal to something else. Yes, we're still bitter, and you can still see a lot of Broncs T-shirts in Edinburg.

I suppose with time it will change. The new freshmen seem to identify with the Vaquero brand. But despite untold amounts of money going into the "We Are One" marketing campaign, and stunts like a virtual doorway between the two student unions, the students also definitely define themselves as Brownsville or Edinburg and get their backs up if they perceive their campus being slighted.

Which is why supervisors have to clamp down on any talk of a "main campus".