Powers to speak at Valley Admissions Center kickoff

HARLINGEN  - William Powers Jr., president of The University of Texas at Austin, will speak Tuesday at the grand opening of the university's Valley Admissions Center, a new resource for students making decisions about education beyond high school.

Powers, who will be accompanied by other university officials, will deliver welcoming remarks starting the noon celebration in the Valley Admissions Center in the Regional Academic Health Center, 2102 Treasure Hills Blvd. in Harlingen.

Leonel Vela, regional dean and professor at the Regional Academic Health Center, also will speak during the celebration.
The establishment of an admissions center in the Rio Grande Valley will allow the university to reach out to students, parents, school officials and university alumni throughout the Valley in the same manner as do the university's admissions centers in Houston, Dallas and San Antonio, said Augustine Garza, deputy director of admissions at UT.

Garza and other university administrators from Austin, including Executive Vice President and Provost Steven W. Leslie, Vice Provost and Director of Admissions Bruce Walker and Director of Student Financial Services Thomas Melecki will join Powers will attend.

Dalinda Martinez is director of the Valley Admissions Center, which includes an admissions counselor, a program coordinator, a financial aid counselor and an administrative support person.