Gawande's "The Cost Conundrum" revisited at RGV Health Equity Conference

MCALLEN, Texas - Two of the three leaders of the Texas Workforce Commission attended South Texas College’s 2024 Workforce Summit.

They were Joe Esparza, who serves as the commissioner representing employers on the TWC board, and Alberto Treviño III, who serves as the commissioner representing labor on the board.

The two workforce development experts spoke on a panel titled: Microcredentials, Credentials of Value, Industry-Recognized Credentials and What They Mean for Employability and Living Wages. The moderator was Lone Star National Bank Executive Vice President Julian Alvarez, himself a former TWC commissioner.

After the panel discussion had ended one question was taken from the audience. It came from Hidalgo County Judge Richard Cortez but it was more of a statement. Cortez said he wished the local workforce commissions had more leeway in how they were allowed to spend their money. He said the Rio Grande Valley is unique and as a result, the local workforce groups should have more discretion on what can do with the funds sent down by the state.

Here are the biographies of the two commissioners that spoke:

Alberto Treviño III

Alberto Treviño III serves as the Commissioner Representing Labor for the Texas Workforce Commission. Governor Greg Abbott appointed him to the three-member Commission on January 9, 2023.  

Prior to his appointment, Commissioner Treviño of Harlingen served as a retired U.S. Border Patrol agent. Treviño has nearly 33 years of combined law enforcement and border patrol experience, with 21 years of service to Local 3307 of the National Border Patrol Council (NBPC), where he served as executive vice president, and later, as treasurer.

Prior to NBPC, Commissioner Treviño served as a police instructor, background investigator, and patrol officer for the Harlingen Police Department. He is a 3rd degree knight of the Knights of Columbus, former member of the City of Harlingen Tennis Advisory Board, and former volunteer for Little League Baseball. 

Treviño received an Associate Degree in Criminal Justice from Texas Southmost College.

Joe Esparza 

Joe Esparza currently serves as the Commissioner Representing Employers for the Texas Workforce Commission. Governor Abbott appointed him to the three-member commission on November 7, 2023.

In his role, Commissioner Esparza serves as an advocate for over 660,000 Texas employers and over 3 million small businesses. He and his team serve as a key resource for all Texas employers to help businesses grow and thrive in Texas.

Prior to his appointment, Commissioner Esparza was sworn in as Texas Deputy Secretary of State on December 14, 2018. In addition, Esparza previously served as a Senior Appointments Manager in the office of the Governor, overseeing numerous gubernatorial appointments during Governor Abbott's first term.
 A graduate of Texas Tech University, Esparza earned a Bachelor of Science in Agricultural Communications. Esparza received an Honorable Discharge from the United States Marine Corps and is a Veteran of the Global War on Terrorism, having served in Iraq.

South Texas College’s 2024 Workforce Summit was held in the Student Union Building of STC’s Pecan Campus in McAllen.

Here is an audio recording of everything the two workforce commissioners said on the panel.

To read the new stories and watch the news videos of the Rio Grande Guardian International News Service go to www.riograndeguardian.com.

RAYMONDVILLE, Texas - Raise Your Hand Texas, a nonprofit group that supports public education, recently hosted a forum in Raymondville for the candidates running for Texas House District 37.

Four candidates appeared, all Democrats. They were Ruben Cortez, Jonathan Gracia, Carol Lynn Sanchez, and Alex Dominguez. Incumbent state Rep. Janie Lopez, R-San Benito, did not attend. The moderator was Rio Grande Valley education leader George McShan.

Perhaps the most striking part of the one and a half hours of discussion came when Cortez was asked a question about full state funding for Pre-K education. Cortez, a former member of the State Board of Education, said the reason it has not happened is due to racism.

Cortez said: “The majority population of kids in public school today are Latino. They they are Hispanic kids, the majority of our students, and I continue to believe that some of our top leaders try to create this institutional racism that we have to keep our people down and we need to fight against these things. And universal Pre-K would only help in this.”

In the HD 37 primary election, Sanchez came fourth and Dominguez third. Cortez came in first and Gracia second. As none of the candidates secured more than 50 percent of the vote a runoff was triggered. It will be between Cortez and Gracia.

Now that there is a runoff, the Rio Grande Guardian has edited audio from the forum to only include the opening and closing remarks of Cortez and Gracia, plus the questions posed by McShan and the responses of Cortez and Gracia.

To read the new stories and watch the news videos of the Rio Grande Guardian International News Service go to www.riograndeguardian.com.

EDINBURG, Texas - La representante federal Mónica De la Cruz, de Edinburg dio la respuesta oficial republicana en español al discurso sobre el estado de unión de 2024 del presidente Biden. Michelle Vallejo de Alton, el rival del partido demócrata De la Cruz, respondió a los comentarios de la congresista.

Aquí están sus comentarios:

To read the new stories and watch the news videos of the Rio Grande Guardian International News Service go to www.riograndeguardian.com.

MISSION, Texas - The Rio Grande Valley is no longer a secret to the big franchise stores. They know about the region and they want to be here.

This is the view of Daniel Galvan, principal broker at Coldwell Banker Commercial-Rio Grande Valley. 

CBC-RGV is a full-service real estate firm based in McAllen that services all of South Texas.

Galvan gave his analysis of the current state of real estate in the RGV at a recent Rio Grande Valley Partnership 2024 Leadership Class event. It was held at the Center for Education & Economic Development in Mission. 

“We used to be a little bit of a secret down here, right? Not anymore. We're on everybody's radar. Everybody wants to be here. We have a list of franchises that want to be in our market, but don't have franchising. It is just another testament to the strength of our region,” Galvan said. 

Galvan told the Partnership’s latest leadership class that real estate in the RGV is “special and unique.”

He said: “If you watch the financial news, it paints a totally different picture than the picture that we've got going on in the Rio Grande Valley. There are external forces contributing to the Rio Grande Valley that can make us very resistant to recession when the rest of the country is actually feeling recession, right? And so we're very lucky to have some of the best real estate market conditions in the country.”

Galvan said the demand for retail space and commercial pad sides in the Valley has never been higher. He said everything that is being built is quickly being leased.

“That's a testament to the demand. There is an extremely high demand for commercial land and retail in the space.”

Editor's Note: Go to the Rio Grande Guardian International News Service website to read the full story.

To read the new stories and watch the news videos of the Rio Grande Guardian International News Service go to www.riograndeguardian.com.

BROWNSVILLE, TEXAS - Brownsville Mayor John Cowen, Jr., spoke at a press conference held at the Border Patrol Station in Brownsville on Feb. 29, 2024.

Cowen joined President Biden and Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas at the conference, having earlier received a briefing from Border Patrol officials at the border, as well as immigration, law enforcement and asylum officers. 

At a press conference with Biden, Cowen spoke about Brownsville’s approach to migrants passing through his city. He said the policy, known as the Brownsville Model, is humane and efficient.

Here are Cowen's remarks in full:

My name is John Cowen and I am the Mayor of the City of Brownsville. Mr. President, thank you for visiting our beautiful city, the largest city in the Rio Grande Valley. 

I believe I speak for all of the elected officials here when I say it's an honor to have you here. We stand united in our commitment to protect our communities, secure our border and uphold our values. I'm a member of the South Texas Alliance of Cities, a group of mayors from South Texas communities. We work in partnership with the federal government, local law enforcement, and nonprofits to address the challenges created by the border issue. 

We understand the complexities, the diversity of thought on possible solutions, and the compelling need for to ensure that immigration is not a wedge issue. 

As local leaders we are responsible for our communities, our safety and well-being. We cannot play politics with this. I am proud of the work we have done in Brownsville to help people entering the country. 

Our approach, called the Brownsville Model is as compassionate and humane as it is efficient. It prioritizes It prioritizes dignity and care. For two years in a Brownsville has been named one of the 20 Safest Cities in America. 

Mr. President, all of us here are overworked and understaffed. In Brownsville. We have assisted over 240,000 migrants since 2021. Our population is just below 200,000. 

From El Paso to San Antonio to Brownsville, we all need help. So to our federal partners, we cannot afford to wait. We need to pass the Senate's promising bipartisan border bill that you have championed. We've studied it and it will give cities critical resources to respond humanely to the migrant challenge. 

Thank you for your leadership. It's a big deal to have the President of the United States in the Rio Grande Valley. And thank you all for visiting beautiful Brownsville. Texas. 

Thank you.

To read the new stories and watch the news videos of the Rio Grande Guardian International News Service go to www.riograndeguardian.com.

BROWNSVILLE, TEXAS - U.S. Rep. Vicente Gonzalez spoke at a press conference held at the Border Patrol Station in Brownsville on Feb. 29, 2024.

Gonzalez joined President Biden and Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas at the conference, having earlier received a briefing from Border Patrol officials at the border, as well as immigration, law enforcement and asylum officers. 

Gonzalez took the opportunity to push one of his top immigration proposals. 

“I continue to urge safe zones in places like Guatemala and Panama and possibly Colombia, where migrants can process their asylum claims thousands of miles from our southern border. It takes the pressure off our southern border and assures that cartels don't continue to enrich themselves by trafficking people to our southern border,” Gonzalez said.

However, Gonzalez said setting up safe zones in Central America cannot be done without bipartisan cooperation. He said a “small, rogue group” of Republicans in Congress were blocking important bipartisan border security legislation that could “really take the pressure off our southern border.”

Here is an audio recording of Congressman Gonzalez’s remarks at the press conference.

To read the new stories and watch the news videos of the Rio Grande Guardian International News Service go to www.riograndeguardian.com.

SANTA ROSA, Texas - Sean Brashear, president and CEO of Rio Grande Valley Sugar Growers, Inc., has given an in-depth interview to Ron Whitlock of Ron Whitlock Reports.

After 51 years in business, the Rio Grande Valley Sugar Growers co-operative decided recently to cease operations.

In the interview, Brashear discusses his upbringing in a farming community, why sugar growing in the Valley was not sustainable without more irrigation water, his frustration with Mexico over fulfilling the terms of a water sharing treaty, and his efforts to find jobs for his workers.

To read the new stories and watch the news videos of the Rio Grande Guardian International News Service go to www.riograndeguardian.com.

BROWNSVILLE, TEXAS - Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas spoke at a press conference held at the Border Patrol Station in Brownsville on Feb. 29, 2024.

Mayorkas accompanied President Biden on a visit to the border, receiving a briefing from the Border Patrol, as well as immigration, law enforcement and asylum officers. He said he and the president learned a lot.

Mayorkas said they heard about the “dynamic and challenging phenomenon of irregular migration we face as our hemisphere and the world experiences the greatest displacement of people since World War Two.”

At times last year, Mayorkas said, 30 percent of the encounters across the entire southern land border occurred in the Rio Grande Valley sector. 

“Today we discussed the dramatic changes our partners in the South have helped bring about by increasing their enforcement before people reach the United States border,” Mayorkas said.

Mayorkas said he and Biden also heard from DHS leadership about how “resource-starved” Border Patrol and Customs and Border Protection are. 

“Only Congress can address our desperate need for more Border Patrol agents, field operations officers, immigration enforcement agents and officers, asylum officers, immigration judges, support personnel, facilities and technology.”

Here is an audio recording of Secretary Mayorkas’ remarks about border security at the press conference.

To read the new stories and watch the news videos of the Rio Grande Guardian International News Service go to www.riograndeguardian.com.

BROWNSVILLE, TEXAS - President Biden spoke at a press conference held at the Border Patrol Station in Brownsville on Feb. 29, 2024.

He said he had just received a briefing from the Border Patrol at the border, as well as immigration, law enforcement and asylum officers. 

“They're all doing incredible work under really tough conditions, really tough conditions. They each told me what you already know and we already know: They desperately need more resources,” Biden said.

“I’ll say it again: they desperately need more resources. They need more agents, more officers, more judges, more equipment in order to secure our border. Folks, it's time for us to move on this. We can't wait any longer.”

Biden urged passage of a border security bill currently before Congress.

Here is an audio recording of President Biden’s remarks about border security at the press conference.

To read the new stories and watch the news videos of the Rio Grande Guardian International News Service go to www.riograndeguardian.com.

MCALLEN, Texas - Among the sponsors of the Rio Grande Valley Hispanic Chamber of Commerce’s “RGV Intergovernmental Update” luncheon were two top internet service providers in the region - AT&T and VTX1.

As such, both were given the opportunity to have representatives speak from the podium at the start of the program. 

Mario Barragan, director of external and legislative affairs for AT&T in South Texas, spoke on behalf of his company. Barragan is a board member of the RGV Hispanic Chamber. 

Barragan said:

“Similar to other areas in the state, our region is experiencing growth in a wide variety of ways. I think the McAllen, Edinburg, Mission area has experienced a population growth of over 12% and employment levels keep rising as well. It now accounts for a third of the workforce in South Texas. And when you have that type of population and employment growth, industry, investments and economic growth also follow suit. 

“AT&T is proud to have invested between 2020 and 2022 to over $90 million into our infrastructure in our wireless and wireline network here. And we're not nearly being done. And by the way, a lot of that investment has a lot to do with the leadership and advocacy of the elected officials that are going to be speaking here today. So thank you all for that. 

“But whether it's investing in our infrastructure or investing in collaborations with community nonprofits to help close the digital divide, we are very committed to continuing to help the RGV be a place where individuals, families and businesses thrive for decades to come. So again, just thank you all for being here. Thank you to the chamber for for bringing us all together, for our elected officials for spending the time with us today. And to all of you for being involved and being here.”

Orlando Quintanilla, COO of VTX1, spoke on behalf of his company.

Quintanilla said:

“Just like our counterparts at AT&T, we want to make sure that we understand everything that's going on with our region. Having partnerships and being a part of the Hispanic Chamber is very important right to companies like ours, to make sure that we're meeting everybody and understanding what the needs are in our communities is very important. 

“And saying that, I am honored to stand here before everyone, as we gather to highlight the vertical government updates that we're looking to discuss. Ultimately, our presenters in the Rio Grande Valley are looking at the best interests of everyone here. VTX one also has a similar mindset. As Cynthia mentioned, I'm with VTX1 Internet, And as a Hispanic it fills me with great pride to be part of this event, to represent the RGV Hispanic Chamber. 

“Basically it's a platform that celebrates the richness of the culture that we share. So it's very important for us, At VTX1 Internet, we are more than just a service provider. We are dedicated to bridging the digital divide. We understand the importance of connecting today's world and we are committed to ensuring that every individual in the RGV has access to the resources and opportunities that the internet brings.”

The lunch was held at the DoubleTree Suites by Hilton in Mcallen. The main part of the program featured a four-person panel. It comprised U.S. Rep. Monica De La Cruz, state Sen. Juan Hinojosa, Hidalgo County Judge Richard Cortez, and McAllen Mayor Javier Villalobos. The moderator was Julian Alvarez, senior vice president of Lone Star National Bank.

Go to the Rio Grande Guardian website to read the full story.

To read the new stories and watch the news videos of the Rio Grande Guardian International News Service go to www.riograndeguardian.com.