A ceremonial $3.75 million check made out to the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) was presented Thursday afternoon within Harlingen Collegiate High.

It was supported by state legislators and university leaders during a photo op, and printed in the corner, a “promise” made out to students.

Regarded as the Promise Plus Program, the measure follows in the footsteps of a $167 million endowment that was made to give financial support to students at the University of Texas in Austin back in 2019.

“We made a commitment we would come back for the other seven institutions,” said Kevin Eltife, Chairman of the UT System Board of Regents. “Two weeks ago, we committed another $300 million in an endowment, in perpetuity, and all of the earnings off of that will go to the seven institutions for these programs.”

UTRGV is one of those seven institutions. The $3.75 million value is what is expected to be generated for the university within the first year and is said to be comparable to an $83 million endowment.

Those monies will go into UTRGV’s already-established Tuition Advantage program, which has seen increases in the past.

Today, UTRGV Tuition Advantage covers students’ tuition costs and mandatory fees with a family income of $100,000 or less. As a result of Promise Plus, that threshold is set to be raised to $125,000 or less by Fall 2022. As a result, it's estimated that 400 more students will graduate debt-free.

“No tuition, no fees,” Eltife said. “We can get you through an incredible four years at this institution and get a college degree — which means so much to families — and have no debt.”

More information on eligibility criteria can be found on UTRGV's Tuition Advantage page.