Dream Big: ENCORE CAMP expands college and career readiness programming to PSJA students SAN JUAN, Texas - It can take years of study to learn to engineer the latest robotic prototypes and just as long to become an expert forensic investigator or business mogul, but students at San Juan Middle School had the opportunity... Read More

Global Experience - ENCORE partners with IMAS to put the world at CAMP Scholars' fingertips Forget about traveling the world in 80 days! ENCORE Scholars can now enjoy a 360-degree view of the globe in a matter of seconds during the College Awareness and Mentorship Program (CAMP). It's all thanks to a partnership with... Read More

Bright Entrepreneurial Minds: ENCORE CAMP Scholars explore business careers MCALLEN, TX.- Have you ever wanted to know exactly what your dog is thinking? Or make your morning commute in the blink of an eye? Maybe you'd like the ability to change the colors and design of your shoes with the click of a mouse... Read More

ENCORE brings College Readiness Family Sessions to McAllen and Edinburg Schools EDINBURG, TEXAS - It starts with a sketch: big house with a smiling family gathered in the living room or sitting around the kitchen table or playing together outside. The colorful homes drawn by the parents and children in the... Read More

Edinburg CISD partners with ENCORE on Pre-K Parental Initiative EDINBURG - Engaging Communities for College Readiness (ENCORE) and Edinburg Independent School District (ECISD) kicked off for the first time a Pre-K parental involvement initiative Thursday, September 22nd at John F. Kennedy Elementary School... Read More

Dr. Roland Arriola is recognized for his service to others PHARR, Texas - A philanthropist, a life-long educator and a political leader: What do they have in common? Dr. Roland Arriola, Dr. Daniel King and Sen. Juan "Chuy" Hinojosa have committed to increasing and improving education opportunities for South Texas students and their families... Read More

ENCORE participates at Radio Esperanza's Community Event EDINBURG, Texas - The ENCORE team made sure that community members who attended Radio Esperanza's Sept. 3 health hair left with more than new backpacks and school supplies... Read More

Edinburg CISD receives grant for Family College Readiness Sessions EDINBURG, Texas - While school districts are concerned about budget cuts in this economic recession time, representatives from the Texas Valley Communities Foundation (TVCOF) were joined by... Read More

ENCORE Expands to McAllen ISD with Wells Fargo's Support MCALLEN, Texas - While McAllen ISD middle school students and their parents gear up for a new school year; school administrators in partnership with local organizations are looking... Read More

ENCORE Model Presented at Oklahoma State Tulsa, OK - ENCORE Model was recently introduced in Oklahoma as a dynamic college and career strategy to combat a major educational problem: students dropping out of school.... Read More

Texas Valley Communities Foundation announces $1 Million Award to improve quality of life for Valley Families Texas Valley Communities Foundation (TVCOF) announces a $1 million grant award from the U.S. Department of Commerce/ Economic Development (EDA) to create an educational infrastructure to boost the Valley... Read More

NASA lands on IRRA! NASA Mars Educational Trainers from Arizona State University (ASU) implemented a two-day dynamic workshop at Information Referral Resource Assistance (IRRA), an organization dedicated... Read More

ENCORE Family Sessions expands to San Juan Middle School When it comes to making sure that Valley students walk from the stage at their high school graduation onto a college campus, it turns out... Read More

Edinburg School District Recognized as One of the Top Five Texas School Districts by H-E-B Edinburg Consolidated Independent School District (CISD) has been recognized as one of the top five school districts in the State of Texas by the... Read More

Valley students get College and Career Ready during ENCORE Annual Event Organized by the Texas Valley Communities Foundation, the convocation brought over 1000 secondary school students and parents from across the Valley together... Read More

ENCORE recognizes State Farm for their commitment to Valley Families After a year of supporting programming aimed at increasing parental involvement in education, Engaging Communities for College Readiness (ENCORE) partner... Read More

ENCORE Convocation to bring college experience to Valley students Hundreds of secondary school students from around the Rio Grande Valley are just a few days away from getting a first-hand look at how college can transform their lives... Read More

ENCORE Program model is evaluated by UTPA doctoral candidates The organizational practices of the Engaging Communities for College Readiness (ENCORE) model were the basis of a research study presented to doctoral candidates of... Read More

ENCORE heads to MARS! Three NASA representatives visited with the Engaging Communities for College Readiness (ENCORE) team to evaluate the needs of Edinburg CISD and IRRA students, parents, administrators... Read More

IRRA Parents Rally at Texas State Capital AUSTIN, TX - Education is the equalizer for all children in this country. It seems that Oscar-winning filmmaker Davis Guggenheim's movie "Waiting for Superman" is influencing South Texas parents... Read More

IRRA learners explore future career possibilities EDINBURG, TEXAS - Abundant Grace Community Church's gymnasium was filled with the excited hum of conversation and laughter when it hosted over 700 Rio Grande Valley learners during Information... Read More

Edinburg community members voice support for ECISD State Award Edinburg school administrators, students, parents, and community leaders rallied together to support the district's bid for the HEB Excellence in Education Award before a panel of visiting grant judges... Read More

A College Readiness Day EDINBURG, TEXAS - Engaging Communities for College Readiness (ENCORE) encouraged Valley students to plan for their futures during the College Readiness Day activities it hosted at Memorial Middle School... Read More

Parents Receive Leadership Award from ENCORE and Edinburg CISD Last year, an average school day for many middle school students living in the small unincorporated community of Hargill might have begun with a walk of a few blocks... Read More

Edinburg CISD and ENCORE present model program on college & career readiness to State Education Leaders DALLAS, TEXAS - Representatives from Edinburg Consolidated Independent School District (CISD) and the Texas Valley Communities Foundation's (TVCOF) Engaging Communities for... Read More

ENCORE brings CAMP experience to alternative schools around the Valley While he was growing up, Robert Rodriguez was captivated by the by the action of the television series CSI: Crime Scene Investigations. The high school sophomore had dreamed of becoming a forensic scientist... Read More

UTPA basketball player encourages middle school students to dream big at ENCORE CAMP Not every shot was a slam dunk, but that never stopped 22-year-old Jermaine Seagears from stepping on the court... Read More

ENCORE College Trip for middle school girls to Austin for UT campus experience The first flight of the day out of the Harlingen International Airport to the state capital was also the first flight ever for all of the girls selected to represent the Rio Grande Valley at a luncheon... Read More

Ford Partnering With ENCORE To Teach Students Critical Thinking Skills Ford Motor Company is partnering with Edinburg Consolidated Independent School District through Engaging Communities for College Readiness (ENCORE) to teach students critical thinking, problem-solving... Read More

PSJA ISD receives 2nd College Readiness Grant from Texas Valley Communities Foundation ENCORE awarded Pharr-San Juan-Alamo CISD $10,000 to implement College Readiness Family Sessions, programming designed to help the families of students across the school district understand the benefits of... Read More

Middle School Students Gain College and Career Knowledge with ENCORE CAMP Near the chalk outline of a body, forensic investigators pass under the yellow "CRIME SCENE DO NOT CROSS" tape to examine the site. They note the red splatters and particles around the area before taking... Read More

Valley Families Explore College Plans Together in ENCORE Sessions Everyone has heard of the gray house that is as gray as gray can be. Inside, the mother and father watch television and worry about the bills waiting to be paid while their three children sit locked behind their bedroom doors... Read More

Edinburg CISD Receives Grant From Texas Valley Communities Foundation and Wells Fargo Bank Amidst applause from an on-looking crowd, Texas Valley Communities Foundation (TVCOF) and Wells Fargo Bank presented board members from Edinburg CISD with a check for a second consecutive year to fund higher education... Read More

Edinburg CISD Summer full of College Readiness While some were enjoying their summer playing video games, swimming in the pool and watching television, over 100 students of the Edinburg school district enrolled in the ENCORE CAMP to start preparing early for a college education... Read More

ENCORE Scholars attend College Readiness Conference A sea of eager students wearing yellow ENCORE Scholar shirts engulfed the UTPA campus on May 7 and 8, 2010 for the inaugural ENCORE Annual Conference. The students carried a red bag... Read More

Caminando al éxito La mejor manera para que los estudiantes vayan a la universidad es involucrando a los padres de familia a conocer los procesos que deben seguirse para continuar con una educación univerisitaria... Read More

ENCORE Annual Conference 2010 Liftoff in T minus…extremely soon! The ENCORE Annual Conference is scheduled to launch May 7th and 8th 2010 at the University of Texas-Pan American’s College of Science and Engineering. And what a launch it will be with the first couple of... Read More

Encore Camps Documentary Recently, some of the ENCORE CAMPS were filmed in a 16:9 digital format to highlight several students and their experiences at the different camps. “Before ... Read More

Congressman Rubén Hinojosa Joins Valley Scholarship Programs To Kick Off SOS Initiative Edinburg, Texas - U.S. Rep. Rubén Hinojosa (TX-15) along with Texas Valley Communities Foundation (TVCOF) and its ENCORE Program kicked off the Sign On for Scholarships (SOS) initiative... Read More

Rio Grande City CISD and Texas Valley Communities Foundation have Mutual Interest in College Readiness February 9, 2010 - Rio Grande City CISD becomes the recipient of a $10,000 contribution from the Texas Valley Communities Foundation (TVCOF)-ENCORE program. Representatives of this organization presented... Read More

South Texas Promotoras Receive Donation From Texas Valley Communities Foundation EDINBURG, TX - Excitement filled the air Monday morning February 15, 2010 at the ENCORE headquarters right before United States Congressman Ruben Hinojosa took the podium to speak... Read More

Otorgan Fondos a Programa de Educación EDINBURG - La Asociación de Promotoras del Sur de Texas recibió ayer al mediodía un cheque de 10 mil dólares por parte de ENCORE (Engaging Communities for Collage Readiness, por su nombre en inglés), cantidad... Read More

BOEING Encourages Edinburg CISD Students to Go the Distance EDINBURG, TX - If you had been through the halls of any Edinburg CISD middle school campus on Thursday October 1, you would think rock stars had invaded the district. Eighth graders were in line waiting anxiously... Read More

Por Su Dedicación A La Educación, Reconocen a Rubén Hinojosa EDINBURG — Por sus contribuciones al mejoramiento de la educación en el Valle del Río Grande, una organización comunitaria reconoció la labor del Congresista federal por el 15 Distrito de Texas... Read More

Ford PAS Professional Development Institute 2009 Educators from Edinburg and San Benito Consolidated Independent School District (CISD) gathered from August 4-7 to participate in the South Texas Ford PAS Professional Development Institute 2009... Read More

Ofrecen Subsidios a Organizaciones Enfocados en las necesidades críticas con las que cuenta el Valle del Río Grande en materia educativa, el programa Engaging Communities for College Readiness (ENCORE por sus siglas en inglés), extiende una invitación a las organizaciones sin fines de lucro... Read More

ENCORE RFP Informational Session EDINBURG - With one of the lowest college going rates in the nation, concerns about whether or not students in the Rio Grande Valley are ready to start a postsecondary education arise among local educational and community leaders... Read More

GAMES Girls' Camp Promotes Career Awareness EDINBURG - Thursday morning, the University of Texas-Pan American departments of science, math and engineering were overtaken by young women from 21 RGV middle schools who gathered to discover the importance of getting ready for college... Read More

ENCORE CAMP Ignites College Awareness EDINBURG - While other students in the Valley get ready for their summer break, Abigail Rodriguez invested her time off learning how to be ready for college... Read More

El Oficio de ser Promotora El ser promotora no es una tarea sencilla, sino que muchas veces enfrenta situaciones difíciles dentro de las comunidades para realizar eficientemente su trabajo, pero también, este gran oficio trae... Read More

Motivan a Guiar por el Camino del Éxito Una invaluable labor educativa es sin duda la que realiza el programa ENCORE (Engaging Communities for College Readiness por su nombre en inglés), el cual promueve la importancia de la educación superior en... Read More

ENCORE Prepares Youth for College On Friday at 8:30AM, you could see upon the horizon dozens of school busses, filled with middle and high school students, eager to soak up as much information about leadership skills and college readiness... Read More

ENCORE brings college readiness awareness to "Colonias" More than 100 "Colonia" Leaders conglomerated at a community college in McAllen, TX in a large classroom last week. This group was not attending a regular course offered at the college campus, but rather were gathered... Read More

South Texas Career and Technical Education Association visits ENCORE Throughout South Texas, administrators seek a variety of new programs and curriculum that will assist them in enhancing the engagement of their students... Read More

Ford PAS Follow-Up Session a Huge Success Research in education has shown that one of the greatest reasons students drop out of high school, thus not pursuing post secondary education, is the lack of relevance and engagement in the classroom... Read More

ENCORE Engages Students at Local Elementary As the college readiness buzz makes its way through high schools and middle schools throughout the Rio Grande Valley, one elementary school in particular decided they wanted to take the initiative to prepare.... Read More

Roland Arriola Leaves UT-Pan American to Help Next Generation of Texans Succeed In many ways, the recent decision by Dr. Roland Arriola, Ph.D., of Edinburg, to retire from a top leadership post at the University of Texas-Pan American will probably mean that he will help even more young South Texans... Read More