Student Profiles / testimonials
COLLEGE OF APPLIED TECH AND GENERAL STUDIES – Cathy Prause 
In December 2008, Cathy Prause will be among the first to graduate with a Computer Information Systems degree from UTB/TSC’s Bachelors of Applied Technology- Computer Information Systems.
Prause always dreamed of getting a college degree, “but school was not an opportunity” for many years. This single mom with two boys to support is now achieving her dream at McLennan Community College in Waco, Texas. “I took a few classes at MCC and learned basic computer skills and realized I really enjoyed being back in school and especially enjoyed learning computer technology,” Cathy said.
After earning a certificate in microcomputer application, she went on to achieve an Associates degree in that specialty, then received two more associates degrees, in programming and in general education.
Prause began working at MCC, first as a work-study student, moving on to become a full-time senior lab instructor as well as a part-time adjunct COSCL and BCISL instructor.
When a representative of UTB/TSC visited MCC and Cathy heard about the soon-to-be-implemented BAT program, she knew it was the path that would take her to her goal of a bachelors degree. “This is a 100% on-line program, the only way I could do it,” Prause said. “Because I am not in a position to move and I have to work full time.”
“I don’t care how old you may be, it’s never too late to get a good education,” she said. “Right now I’m on Cloud 9! I’m serious about continuing on to a master’s degree, and I can do that through UTB/TSC.”
COLLEGE OF LIBERAL ARTS – Heathcliff Lopez 
Heathcliff Lopez found his voice when he became a member of The University of Texas at Brownsville and Texas Southmost College’s Campus Choir his freshman year.
It marked the first time Lopez showed off his tenor voice in a group setting rather than alone in his car. He is now a member of the university’s Master Chorale, which had its most recent international performances in Ireland in March 2007.
“I’ve gained independence,” Lopez said about his time at school. “I can live on my own. Also with the music program, it’s stronger than most people realize. The professors have high standards and they push students to excel.”
Lopez, a music education major from Laredo, wants to be a school choral teacher when he graduates.
He is getting valuable teaching experience as a certified piano instructor for the university’s Music Academy. He teaches elementary and middle school students the skills needed to not only become good piano players but to appreciate composers, like his favorites Mozart and Debussy, and their classical works.
“It’s UTB/TSC that is really shaping me into a professional educator,” he said.
COLLEGE OF SCIENCE AND MATH TECH – Erick Vallarino 
Erick Vallarino likes being a trailblazer.
As a physics graduate in The University of Texas at Brownsville and Texas Southmost College Department of Physics and Astronomy, Vallarino is pioneering technology using Atomic Force Microscopes imaging LDL and DNA.
“I like that the program provides a close relationship with the professors,” said the 25-year-old. “It is close to home and we are doing great research here and students have the opportunity to be a part of it.”
However, Vallarino has also made breakthroughs outside the classroom as well. When he was working on his bachelors in engineering and physics, he started what has become a national championship chess team.
“We’ve come a long way since we started about six years ago,” Vallarino said. “When we started, we basically recruited anyone who could move a chess piece. We had just enough to make a team, no budget and no scholarships.”
Now, the team that started as a club boasts state and national titles, including 2005 National Collegiate Championship Team and recently Chess College of the Year, and is a competitor in student recruitment and scholarship opportunities.
“I am very proud of what the team has done and the things we have accomplished,” he said. “We are still a young team, but this just shows what a little determination and hard work can do.”
SCHOOL OF BUSINESS – Matthew Kendall 
When Matthew Kendall graduates in May 2007, the transplanted Californian says he will not be finished with school at the age of 34.
Rather, Kendall is heading off to law school; having received three acceptances by mid-semester, he’s confident he’ll select the right one, even if it leads him to northern climes for a few years.
Kendall was attracted to UTB/TSC because of the School of Business international business program.
“What better place to study international business than right here on the border with Mexico,” Kendall said. “My plan is to focus my law studies on international corporate law.”
Maintaining a 4.0 GPA and listed the past two years in Who’s Who in American Universities, Kendall is president of the UTB/TSC Student Government Association.
His campus activities include Alpha Chi Honor Society, where as a two-term president of the university chapter, Kendall spearheaded fundraising and community service projects. Kendall’s personal volunteering efforts have been at the Brownsville Literacy Center where he taught in a classroom next door to his father, also a BLC volunteer.
Kendall has played a prominent role on the student advisory council to the dean of the School of Business. An achievement of which he says he is particularly proud is co-drafting the School of Business Honor Code, the first honor code to be put in place at UTB/TSC, adopted in early 2008.
SCHOOL OF EDUCATION – Gabriel Gutierrez 
Gabriel Gutierrez left his native Brownsville to attend college, but came back to teach fourth grade at Brownsville’s Canales Elementary School and to pursue a master’s degree at The University of Texas at Brownsville and Texas Southmost College.
He is studying in the School of Education’s counseling and guidance program and wants to become a certified school counselor and licensed professional counselor.
“I would like to work at the middle school level where the plight of adolescence has major influence on student development,” he said.
Gutierrez wants to someday earn a doctorate degree and do research on multicultural issues in the Hispanic community.
He got his first taste of presenting research in an academic setting when he talked about Hispanic historical achievements in the mental health field at the 25th annual Winter Roundtable on Cultural Psychology and Education in New York City in February 2008.
“I want to put this university on the national map in some sort of aspect and give credit to the professors we have in the counseling field,” Gutierrez said.
SCHOOL OF HEALTH SCIENCES – Sue Antoinette Budd 
After leaving Washington D.C. to take care of her retired mother in Brownsville, Sue Antoinette Budd, 54, was looking for a way to give back to people.
A retired interior landscape designer, Budd, returned to school at The University of Texas at Brownsville and Texas Southmost College to become a nurse.
“Wanted to do something with a social significance and it was time for a change for me,” said the Ohio native. “I hope to work in hospice nursing to aid and comfort people in their last days. I’m a people person and I look forward to that personal interaction with people.”
Although Budd may not be a traditional student, she is reflective of many students at UTB/TSC who come back to school looking to enhance their education, make a career change, or complete their degree.
She also has the highest cumulative GPA in the Associate Degree Nursing program.
“I have had some really good professors,” Budd said. “I look forward to working in the field and pursuing bachelors in nursing.”