The Third Decade

E4 | Sunday, November 17, 2019 | lmtonline.com | Laredo Morning Times #%! &""$(),+*,' see a campus develop in the middle of practically no- where. “I drove out to see that and there was just a little dirt road that’s now University Boulevard, and they were just starting to build what is today the Killam Library,” Thompson said. “This really was scrub land, it was basi- cally desert since we’re on the edge of the Chihuahuan R?&?'%I F &OM O99 %<?&? (;99O'& go up and concrete poured, but I just couldn’t imagine what it would be today.” Thompson said during the Phase I ribbon-cutting ceremony, many politicians P)A:?@ %) %<? $*;#?'&;%K during a blazing hot day. Sayavedra had a large tent near University Boule- vard, with about 100 people packed under it. “Leo seemed to have in- vited every politician south of San Antonio, and as it is the habit in Laredo, a lot of politicians take credit for more than what they do,” Thompson said. “These pol- iticians were droning on and on for over an hour.” Anne Richards, who was the Texas governor at the %;,?J Q*O99K <O@ ?*)$=<I “She was one character,” Thompson laughed. “She gets up to the mic and said, ‘I’m just all about clapped out. Let’s cut the ribbon.’” In 1995, a kind donor supported constructing Can- seco Hall in memory of the Laredo physician. The uni- versity would also construct a nursing arts wing and cre- ate a nursing program. Phase I also included what would be Bob Bullock Hall – dedicated to the pow- erful lieutenant governor – the lab classroom building and the central utility plant. F* %)%O9J ;% A)&% ON)$% -66 million for Phase I, Garcia said. R'I EI !<O'9?& E?**?%%J who became the fourth university president after Sayavedra and served from 1995 to 2001, said during this time he saw the univer- sity grow at an extraordinary rate. For Phase II, the univer- sity began constructing the R'I GICI !O*?&A) B$'&;*= Hall, Anthony J. and Geor- gio A. Pellegrino Hall, the Kinesiology-Convocation Building and the Universi- ty’s Physical Plant Building. In February 1997, TA- MIU held formal dedication ceremonies for the four new buildings. That year, Cuellar was the chairman of the appro- priations committee and of the higher education sub- committee, and so he helped &?A$'? -4H ,;99;)* >)' /"- MIU for the rest of its build- ings. In May, the University Village apartment complex, M<;A< A)&% -5I8 ,;99;)*J &)9@ out its one-bedroom units and featured free internet and a computer lab. F* B)#?,N?' %<O% K?O'J TAMIU welcomed the ad- dition of apartment-style student housing, which was developed through a priva- tized partnership with Amer- ican Campus Lifestyles from Austin. “It makes for the life of the University,” Jennett said. 0/<? O(O'%,?*%& M?'? Q*?J the students seemed to enjoy it, and it allowed the inter- national students places to live.” F* B)#?,N?' 8222J %<? Phase III groundbreaking ceremonies were held, titled “Making Our Blueprints a Reality.” This phase entailed O -62I5 ,;99;)* ?L(O*&;)* where campus facilities more than doubled in size. Phase III would include the Center for the Study of Western Hemispheric Trade, %<? 1%$@?*% R?#?9)(,?*% Center and the Center for the Fine and Performing Arts. TAMIU welcomes its fourth President F* 8225J R'I D?) 1OK- avedra accepted a post as R?($%K !<O*A?99)' M;%< %<? TAMU System. The TAMU System then began its search for a new leader. In June 1996, ;% O(();*%?@ ?*=;*??' R'I EI Charles Jennett, who was the provost and vice presi- dent for academic affairs at Clemson University in South Carolina. F* B)#?,N?'J /"CF. held a two-day ceremony for his inauguration, which included groundbreaking for on-campus student housing, an alumni homecoming, a lecture and an inauguration dinner and dance. Jennett, who currently resides in Wimberley, is no stranger to Laredo and said he was happy to come back and help out the ever- expanding university where “so much change was occur- ring so fast.” “It’s my wife’s home- town, and we were really pleased to come back to Texas,” Jennett said. “And (we had) a university that was essentially starting from scratch and building things the right way, and they did.” Jennett said he was im- pressed and proud of how the university attracted so many students from all over the world. In 1963, when Jennett married his wife, he said there were about 25,000 people in Laredo. When he got to the uni- versity, the population was N)),;*= O% O 66+ =')M%< 'O%? A),(O'?@ %) 73+ &%O%?- wide from 1995 to 2000, ac- A)'@;*= %) %<? /"CF. 7HH6 Master Plan’s regional con- text. “And we had students from all over, like Europe and the Middle East, so it really was an international university,” Jennett said. President dr. j. charles jennett