STARR COUNTY, TEXAS -- South Texas College lost a beloved board member to cancer on Saturday.
Manuel Benavidez Jr., who represented Starr County on the STC Board of Trustees, is a past president of the board and served as secretary until his passing.
STC will honor Benavidez by naming the college’s new Starr County Campus Rural Technology Center in his honor.
“There are no adequate words to describe just how much Mr. Benavidez did to support the mission of providing equal access to higher education to students across Starr County,” said Dr. Shirley A. Reed, STC president. “I worked alongside him since the college’s founding and he was a tenacious advocate for our students. He was a passionate, good man and we are so proud to be able to honor him in this way.”
Following his appointment as a founding STC board member in 1993, he was re-elected to his board seat two times.
Benavidez served the board as chair, vice-chair and secretary.
He also served as the director of transportation for the Rio Grande City CISD.
Benavidez’s efforts on behalf of STC have received national acclaim.
In 2005, he was recognized at the Association of Community College Trustees Annual Congress as the recipient of the Lifetime Membership Award for exemplary leadership and strong support in the areas of diversity and equal opportunity.
In 2006 he earned the Western Region Trustee Leadership Award, given by the Association of Community College Trustees.
He was one of five regional award winners selected from nominees located across three countries, including the United States, Canada and England.
Benavidez also held numerous other service positions.
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