Special session, special elections, and a new student assistant
Special session, special elections, and a new student assistant
New Strategic Engagement student assistant, Sydney Ramon ’23
Howdy, Advocates!
It's been a busy summer for many of us as we continue our slow return to normal operations. Here at The Association of Former Students, it has been a joy to resume some of the typical activities that help welcome our newest Aggies, the Class of 2025, to campus.
We are thrilled to introduce our new Strategic Engagement student assistant, Sydney Ramon ’23. As an incoming junior at Texas A&M, Sydney has already built an impressive resume and made meaningful contributions to the Advocacy Network. Get to know Sydney a little bit more through her bio below.
We thank you for your continued willingness to advocate for Texas A&M. As always, please reach out anytime we can be of help to you!
In the Aggie Spirit,
Miranda Henderson ’09
Howdy! My name is Sydney Ramon and I am a junior political science major and communication minor from McAllen. On campus, I serve as the vice president of legislative relations for the Texas A&M Student Government Association and as a Texas A&M Foundation Maroon Coat. In 2021, I served as a current student representative for Texas A&M on Orange and Maroon Legislative Day. Currently, I am the Strategic Engagement student assistant for the Texas A&M Advocacy Network through The Association of Former Students, where I support the department's advocacy initiatives through the implementation of communication and media strategies. Thanks and gig 'em!

Follow us on social media!


The Texas A&M Advocacy Network has an active presence on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, where we use these platforms to interact with Advocates, elected and government officials, and former students. With the addition of our new Strategic Engagement Student Assistant, Sydney Ramon ’23, we are re-vamping our social media presence to help highlight the contributions of Texas A&M and current/former students to our state and nation!
Be sure to follow the Texas A&M Advocacy Network on these platforms and like, share, and retweet! The goal of our content is two-fold:
1. Engage with our elected and government officials, and
2. Provide Advocates with resources to share the positive impacts of Texas A&M when meeting or speaking with these officials.
Your engagement on these platforms helps us get more visibility and spread our message. We hope you find these sources helpful, and we welcome your feedback on any of these channels. Check us out on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram!

Second Special Session underway


After narrowly meeting the threshold for a quorum on Aug. 19, the Texas House of Representatives resumed business for the second Special Session of the 87th Legislature. Get a refresher of the agenda items included for this session here.
Redistricting remains on the horizon and will be included in a future special session. On Aug. 12, the U.S. Census Bureau released data necessary for legislatures to undertake the redistricting process. This wealth of data can be found on the U.S. Census Bureau's website.

Rep. Pacheco, vice chair of Higher Ed, resigns House seat


On Aug. 6, Rep. Leo Pacheco (D-San Antonio) of House District 118 announced he would be resigning his seat before the end of his second term in office. Rep. Pacheco is leaving the Legislature to accept a position teaching public administration at San Antonio College.
Rep. Pacheco's resignation was effective Aug. 19. Gov. Greg Abbott is expected to announce the date for a special election to fill his seat soon. HD-118 includes parts of southern and eastern Bexar County.
We thank Rep. Pacheco for his service to our state, and in particular for his service as the vice chair of the Higher Education Committee in the 87th Legislature. We wish him the best as he teaches the next generation of government leaders and public servants!

Special Election for HD-10 scheduled for Aug. 31


Following the special election of Rep. Jake Ellzey to Texas' 6th Congressional District, a new special election to fill his vacated Texas House seat will be held Aug. 31. Filing for HD-10 closed on Aug. 12 with eight candidates throwing their hats in the ring.
The field of eight includes five Republicans, one Democrat, one Independent, and one Libertarian candidate. You can find the full list of candidates, along with other information about the district, at this link.
Like all special elections to the Texas Legislature, there will be no primary election. If no candidate receives a majority of the votes cast, the top two vote-getters — regardless of party affiliation — will advance to a runoff election, to be set for a later date.
This field also includes two former students of Texas A&M — John Wray ’93 and Brian Harrison ’04. The Advocacy Network does not endorse candidates, but we are always proud to see former students who are willing to run for office!
Early voting began on Aug. 23 and is currently underway. If you live in HD-10, be sure to vote for your preferred candidate! If you are not sure if your home falls within the boundaries of this district, you can check by inputting your address at our advocacy platform, tx.ag/Advocate.

New report finds high ROI for public universities, 4-year degrees


A recent report from a public policy group on higher education "return on investment" found that, in 65% of the bachelor's degree programs analyzed, a majority of graduates had recouped the costs of their degrees in 10 years or less after graduating. 
Public universities like Texas A&M showed even better numbers, where 73% of programs saw a majority of graduates recoup their investment within 10 years, and 56% within just five years.
Read more about this report and additional information at The New York Times. 
This is great support for a theme you will notice on our social media — that "College Pays!" Be sure to keep these figures in mind when advocating for Texas A&M and higher education!

Seen in the Texas Capitol


In July, the Advocacy Network visited the Texas Capitol to deliver copies of the July-August issue of Texas Aggie, the official magazine of the Aggie Network. Our Speaker of the House, Dade Phelan, might be a graduate of UT Austin; but we enjoyed seeing the May-June issue of Texas Aggie on prominent display in his office!

ICYMI at TAMU


A roundup of the headlines from Aggieland this month:
The Texas A&M Advocacy Network is one of the many programs supported by donors to The Association of Former Students.
Make a gift today.
AggieNetwork on Facebook AggieNetwork on Twitter AggieNetwork on LinkedIn AggieNetwork on Instagram MAKE A GIFT
AggieNetwork@AggieNetwork.com AggieNetwork.com
Trouble seeing this email? View this email in your browser.
Want to see all Association subscription options or receive fewer Association emails? Manage your subscriptions.
I would like to unsubscribe from all Association email.
The Association of Former Students
505 George Bush Drive
College Station, TX 77840 United States
This email was sent to .
To continue receiving our emails, add us to your address book. (000000)
Subscribe to our email list.