Texas Border Business
Amanda Sotelo
South Texas College has expanded into Mission, Texas with a new site at the Center for Education and Economic Development (CEED) thanks to an on-going partnership with the Mission Economic Development Corporation (MEDC).
The partnership and expansion were recently celebrated with a ribbon cutting attended by Mission EDC leadership, STC administration, local elected officials and regional industry partners.
“Solid partnerships are key, and the city of Mission is a vital partner in education. This ribbon cutting is a symbol of the collaboration that is expanding opportunities into Mission for our community and workforce,” said Ricardo J. Solis, Ph.D. “As we enter a new era at the Mission CEED building, we look forward to continue providing training that will upskill, reskill and train residents for in-demand jobs that will be a steppingstone for life-changing success.”
The STC office at the CEED building is a response to the needs of regional industry and will make training opportunities more accessible for nearby communities to reskill and upskill its workforce.
Courses and trainings offered at the CEED, facilitated by STC’s Department of Continuing Education and Center for Advanced Training and Apprenticeships (CATA), are open to the public or can be customized to meet the needs of local industry and businesses that are interested in providing their employees with personal skills development, business development and emerging technology classes, such as customer service, organizational ethics and artificial intelligence.
One local general contracting and construction company, Noble Texas Builders, with locations in La Feria, San Antonio and Houston, has taken advantage of the trainings offered by STC, and for several of its employees like Diana Gonzalez, Noble Risk Management manager, the trainings have meant progression and promotion.
“I came into Noble as a project manager and since completing STC’s Construction Superintendent Apprenticeship program, I have seen growth, personally and professionally, and I have seen many others from Noble experience the same thing,” she said. “We encourage all our employees to take advantage and now, with a training site in Mission, STC trainings will be more accessible than ever for us and many others.”
Teclo Garcia, Mission EDC chief executive officer, said this partnership is a great opportunity for the city of Mission to attract new employers and increase the skill level of the region. He is grateful to STC for this partnership and for all it does for the community and its residents.
“While our partnership with STC is not new, we’ve collaborated on scholarships for many years, awarding millions of dollars in scholarships for Mission residents, it is important that we continue to move this partnership forward. We are grateful to STC,” he said. “So, being able to open our doors to the college means we get to offer our community what it needs it terms of training and education. This partnership will help us fulfill our three pillars: create jobs, find opportunities for investment and enhance the workforce.”
Courses offered at the CEED are offered at a minimal fee and will be taught by STC faculty members who are experts in the subject matter. Most courses run from one to 16 days and at the end of each course, a certificate of completion is awarded.