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Texas A&M University-San Antonio celebrates the success of the Mays Center and Ready to Work partnership
SAN ANTONIO — The Mays Center for Experiential Learning and Community Engagement celebrated five years on October 13 in the Science and Technology Building. University President Dr. Cynthia Teniente-Matson along with Associate Vice President & Executive Director of the Mays Center Dr. Adriana Contreras and other special guests spoke on the impact of the Mays Center as well as the Ready to Work partnership. Founded in August of 2017 following a $5 million donation from the Mays Family Foundation to the Texas A&M University-San Antonio (A&M-SA) Mays Center to provide enhanced learning opportunities and access to resources and relationships to develop students into career-ready and community-minded graduates. Dr. Matson reflected on Lowry Mays’s legacy and the Mays Centers service to Texas A&M University-San Antonio during the event.
Mays Center Success
Following a 10-year plan, programmatic goals aligned with the University's and Center's mission are created annually to ensure its objectives are carried out. There have been 4,777 requests for career advising appointments since the Center was founded, 67 grants were given to students completing an unpaid or underpaid academic internship. Three new community-based work-study programs from the Mays Center created opportunities for 19 students to use federal work-study funds to gain professional skills with community partners, earning a combined $41,566.
“It is evident that the commitment to community engagement encompasses all aspects of this University. Community engagement is embedded in the mission of the campus and is seen daily in many ways,” said Dr. Karen Burgard, associate professor for the Department of Curriculum & Instruction.
Through the Mays Center, Dr. Burgard along with many others has volunteered in multiple Choose, Act, Impact days as well as participating in the Big Brothers & Big Sisters of South Texas a mentoring program that pairs 7th graders with University staff members.
Halfway through the 10-year plan, the Mays Center has 15 full-time staff, one graduate assistant and eight student workers, with faculty and staff partnering with the University through internships and externships. Below are some collaborative efforts between Mays Center staff and University faculty.
- Executive director contributed to a white paper with faculty from the College of Business, Department of Management and Marketing on the Inscape Spring Break Externship.
- Financial education coordinator facilitated the Ohio State University's Study on Collegiate Financial Wellness.
- Center executive director worked with an Associate Professor in the College of Arts and Sciences to research and document the initial need for the General's Store (A&M-SA food pantry).
- Assistant director for Internships facilitated the National Study on Collegiate Internships piloted in spring 2021; the official first launch in fall 2021
- Financial education coordinator is the principal investigator for a research study on student financial education through Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association.
Mays Celebrates Ready to Work Agreement
The Mays Center announced their new partnership with San Antonio Ready to Work and Workforce Solutions Alamo with at the Mays Center five-year celebration and held an official signing of the agreement.
“Together the consortium is working to serve those who are unemployed or under employed and those who want a better life by taking advantage of additional training and opportunities,” said Adrian Lopez, CEO of Workforce Solutions Alamo.
The $6.7 million contract will go towards tuition and emergency funds for the A&M-San Antonio community. Ready to Work is an educational and job placement program aiming to help the community by improving San Antonians' quality of life.
Executive Director of Workforce Development for the City of San Antonio Mike Ramsey spoke on the how the partnership with the University will combine expertise with resources to produce talent that is connected to opportunity to strengthen the community.
“Let's align our strategic priorities to truly ensure that the people who need our help the most have a fair chance, a fair chance at the American dream, a fair chance of having their basic needs met, afford housing, to have a good quality job with benefits including health benefits. That’s what this Ready to Work initiative is all about, and it cannot happen without partnership with phenomenal institutions like Texas A&M University-San Antonio,” said Ramsey.
Unemployed, underemployed or underserved residents can access and complete training and education that will prepare them to secure employment in high-demand and well-paid careers. No other city in the nation supports its residents with $200 million in sales tax revenue, including $110 million in tuition assistance.
“Mr. Mays stood for disrupting generational poverty and providing opportunity for everyone. He understood what we (A&M-SA) understood, that many first-generation students miss that network opportunity. A significant component of what the Mays Center is all about, is getting in front of and ahead of opportunities,” said Dr. Teniente-Matson. “And with that, we are ‘Ready to Work.’”
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About Texas A&M University-San Antonio
Established as a stand-alone university in 2009, Texas A&M University-San Antonio is a comprehensive four-year public university that reflects the culturally diverse, heritage-rich community it serves. Situated on nearly 700 acres in South San Antonio, the University offers 37 undergraduate degrees and 19 graduate degrees to more than 7,000 students. A&M-San Antonio is home to the Henry G. Cisneros Institute for Emerging Leaders and the Cyber Engineering Technology/Cyber Security Research Center. The University holds the Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI) designation and is one of only a few higher education institutions in the U.S. to have received the Seal of Excelencia certification from Excelencia in Education for its support of Latino student success. Seventy-seven percent of A&M-SA students identify as Hispanic/Latinx, and approximately 60 percent are the first in their family to attend college. A&M-San Antonio is a military-embracing institution; in 2020, Military Times ranked the University No. 35 in the nation for “Best for Vets: Colleges.” Visit tamusa.edu for more information. #onamission