BRAZOS CO. COMMISSIONERS REJECT RVP’S PETITION

  

The Brazos County Commissioners rejected the Research Valley Partnership’s petition to create a new community college district during their meeting today (Tuesday).

The petition was submitted to the county on April 25th with 9,917 signatures, short of the 13,000 the RVP’s Brazos Talent Initiative Steering Committee previously said they had gathered.

Of the signatures gathered, 709 did not meet qualifications. The 9,208 valid signatures fell below the 9,607 needed for the petition to be forwarded to the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board.

According to The Eagle, the RVP handed out a prepared press release after the commissioners court meeting. The press release did not address why the petition fell short, but did say it was the largest petition ever submitted to the court for certification.

The RVP's committee began the push for a new community college last fall, saying Blinn College wasn’t meeting the workforce needs in Brazos County. However, progress on the endeavor slowed after Blinn and the Texas A&M Engineering Extension Service joined together in a workforce training partnership at the new RELLIS campus.