September 11, 2008
St. Mary’s University has received an almost $600,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to boost neighborhood revitalization by developing a one-stop center for the area near the campus.
The $596,794 grant through HUD’s Hispanic Serving Institutions Assisting Communities (HSIAC) Program will allow the University to establish a One Stop Neighborhood Revitalization Center on the University campus. The center will provide a variety of services to the surrounding area, including assistance and counseling for home ownership and repair, economic development and small business assistance, and coordination of community outreach.
“St. Mary’s University’s five-year strategic plan, Vision 2012, calls for the University to be more actively involved in community outreach, development and improvement, and to collaborate with our neighbors to revitalize and beautify the areas surrounding the University,” St. Mary’s President Charles L. Cotrell, Ph.D., said. “The One Stop Neighborhood Revitalization Center is a direct response to this strategic mandate to lead neighborhood revitalization and commercial transformation efforts through academic programs, service learning experiences, and collaborations and partnerships that will bring resources to the community and help the University become an economic engine driving neighborhood growth and prosperity. This grant will allow us to greatly move forward those efforts.”
“This investment in St. Mary’s University’s One Stop Center will pay dividends for years to come; it will allow the University to build off of their existing commitment to renewing and revitalizing its neighboring community,” said U.S. Rep. Charlie Gonzalez. “Their presence and leadership in our community has been invaluable to date, and I’m proud to know that St. Mary’s will have proper resources to continue their efforts in the future.”
This grant award is the result of efforts by the members of the St. Mary’s University Neighborhood Revitalization Task Force, which is comprised of community leaders, neighborhood leaders and residents, and St. Mary’s faculty, staff, students and alumni. The task force is led by Ramiro Cavazos, a St. Mary’s alumnus and President/CEO of the San Antonio Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.