By University Communications
Thursday, 10 12 2023

The transformative collaboration will help build a bridge to academic success

SAN ANTONIO - Texas A&M University-San Antonio and IDEA Public Schools officially embarked on a collaborative journey today. This new partnership will help build a bridge to academic success, providing students with greater access to the University resources they need to thrive in an ever-changing world. 

IDEA was established in 2000 in a small church in Donna, Texas, to help combat some of the community’s educational deficiencies, said Philip Garza, IDEA’s chief college officer. The school originally served only middle school students, but starting in 2005, IDEA began to expand, opening K-12 campuses across the state, with the first San Antonio campus opening in 2012. Today, the Weslaco-based not-for-profit has a network of about 150 tuition-free, public charter schools, serving more than 80,000 students throughout Texas, Louisiana, Florida and Ohio.

As IDEA expanded, it began partnering with local colleges and universities, dedicated to the idea that each child deserves access to higher education. Angelica Garza, A&M-San Antonio’s director of admissions, said the University’s and IDEA’s missions aligned perfectly, and the transformative partnership between the two organizations will help foster many new opportunities.

“We’re building a bridge to success,” she said. “Through this alliance, we’re creating a gateway for future leaders.”    

Leading up to today’s formal announcement, IDEA and A&M-San Antonio had already achieved impressive results together:

• 549 IDEA students have successfully applied to the University for fall 2024
• 249 IDEA students have been accepted for fall 2024
• 150 IDEA students have enrolled at the University since 2018
• 49 IDEA students enrolled at the University for fall 2023

The new collaboration will further bolster the relationship between A&M-San Antonio and IDEA, as together they work to develop initiatives to help more IDEA students achieve academic success at the University.  

“Part of our strategy is to make sure we’re connecting with people who care about what we care about, which are low-income, first-generation kids having access to the American Dream,” said Garza with IDEA. “And one of the ways we’re going to achieve that is by sending our students to the country's best colleges, like A&M-San Antonio.”

The University’s new collaboration with IDEA is yet another tool in its toolbelt to help make higher education more accessible and affordable for everyone in Texas. A&M-San Antonio is launching the Jaguar Promise for the 2024-2025 academic year, which will provide full tuition and fee support along with a book stipend each semester to help cover costs after all financial aid and scholarships have been awarded. The Jaguar Promise casts a wider net to help serve more students, including not just incoming freshmen, but also transfer students and Early College High School graduates.

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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 7,300 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 30 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. More than 77 percent of A&M-SA students identify as Hispanic, and approximately 72 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