KRGV photojournalist Liliana Perez reflects on a school bus ride-along with Texas DPS in this week

A grant is expanding Donna North High School’s veterinary science program, more than doubling its hands-on surgical training capacity and preparing students to address regional veterinary shortages.

Brownsville, TX (KRGV) — Brownsville Independent School District is moving students from Raquel Peña Elementary School to Garcia Middle School after smoke from a nearby controlled brush burning got worse, according to the district.

Grulla High School senior class president Miguel Sanchez excels academically as a certified phlebotomist with sights set on becoming a fetal surgeon.

The Texas Historical Commission installed a new historic plaque in Mercedes, Texas, at the corner of Missouri Avenue and Third Street, marking the former site of Colegio Jacinto Treviño, one of the nation’s first Mexican‑American colleges. City leaders said the marker preserves a piece of Rio Grande Valley history, and historic preservation officer Marisol Vidales noted its importance for remembering the rights Mexican Americans fought for.

Special services teacher Francisco Contreras Jr. faces charges of sexual assault and improper relationship with a student after confessing to a multi-month relationship, according to Starr County records.

Special education teacher Francisco Contreras Jr. faces charges of sexual assault and improper relationship with a student after confessing to a multi-month relationship, according to Starr County records.

McAllen High School senior Addison Humphreys manages an autoimmune diagnosis while excelling in rodeo, founding Books 2 Borders to donate thousands of books to Reynosa, and preparing for a pre-med track at Rice University.

La Joya ISD received over $350,000 from the Texas Workforce Commission to build a new HVAC training lab in partnership with South Texas College.

Regina Susana Hernandez, a junior at Roma High School, became the first Roma ISD student chosen for the fully funded STARS at MIT Fly‑In Program, one of 23 selected nationwide from over 8,000 applicants. The three‑day program in Boston included campus tours and engineering workshops, and after returning to Roma she is organizing a group to assist other local students in applying.

Governor Greg Abbott announced that the Texas Workforce Commission will award more than $20 million in 84 Jobs and Education for Texans grants to public junior, state and technical colleges, school districts and open‑enrollment charter schools across Texas. The funds will purchase equipment to start or improve career‑technical education, enabling over 7,400 students to be trained, including local programs for nurses, automotive technicians and HVAC mechanics.

The Starr County Sheriff’s Office assumed the investigation of Rio Grande City High School teacher Francisco Contreras Jr., who faces charges of an improper educator‑student relationship and two counts of sexual assault of a child. According to the sheriff’s booking report, Contreras was arrested on Wednesday, is listed as a special services teacher on the school’s website, and was suspended by Rio Grande City Grulla ISD following the allegations.

A former La Grulla High School assistant band director faces charges of improper relationship between educator and student following allegations of groping, according to a Starr County criminal complaint.