Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi One of Three Institutions to Sign Partnership Agreement withWest Oso ISD
 
Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi is one of three institutions of higher learning that will sign a partnership agreement with the West Oso Independent School District on Thursday, March 11 at 10 a.m. in the West Oso High School Library.

The partnership agreement, which is part of a strategy in meeting the state’s “Closing the Gaps” goal of increasing college and university enrollments by one-half million students by 2015, also includes Del Mar College and Texas A&M University-Kingsville. Its purpose is to increase the college-going rate of students from West Oso High School by providing expanded recruitment and outreach activities.

“We have been working with West Oso High School for many years in a number of initiatives,” said Manuel Lujan, associate vice president of enrollment management at A&M-Corpus Christi. “More recently we have partnered with West Oso in developing the Go Centers to make sure more students are exposed to higher education opportunities, including financial aid and scholarship information. The agreement we are going to sign formalizes the close working relationship we have with West Oso High School and it supports our desire to establish a more effective working relationship.”

The partnership agreement is the first collaborative effort by the regional institutions of higher learning and the West Oso ISD to facilitate student enrollment into higher education. Del Mar, the original higher education partner in an agreement that began in 2002, invited both A&M-Corpus Christi and A&M-Kingsville to formulate an expanded partnership this year. The signatories for the respective institutions will be Lujan for A&M-Corpus Christi; Jose Rivera, vice president of student development and community learning at Del Mar; Frank Ureno, associate vice president of student enrollment management at A&M-Kingsville; and Dr. Crawford Helms, superintendent of West Oso High School.