SAN ANTONIO (June 24, 2019)–––After completing a momentous first legislative session, serving on five Senate Committees and passing various bills to better all areas of Texas District 19 that includes St. Philip’s College, a first-year statesman observed best practice programs for veterans in Military City USA with leaders, employees and service-providing partners of the Alamo Colleges District that is the first community college system to earn the Baldrige award.
The first Hispanic Republican Texas State Senator in Texas history—The Honorable Pete Flores, once served many years on the front lines of national and homeland security as a Texas State game warden until he retired at the rank of colonel. He currently serves as Texas State Senator for District 19, and he was co-hosted on his SPC field visit in his capacity as a member of his legislating body’s Education Committee by SPC President Dr. Adena Williams Loston and Alamo Colleges District Chancellor Mike Flores (no relation to Senator Flores).
District 19 includes the SPC service area, and while at SPC, Flores learned how the Alamo Colleges District and its member colleges maintain educational programs to support all veterans in a visit to SPC’s innovative Good Samaritan Veterans Outreach and Transition Center facility. Service providers-in-residence at the college’s hub of no-cost services for any eligible veteran, active duty, or family member in Military City USA operate in partnership with The City of San Antonio at 202 Connelly St.
Following his SPC field visit, Senator Flores shared the following post at his Facebook social media site on June 14:
“Visited the Good Samaritan Veterans outreach and transition Center part of the Alamo College systems great program to help our Veterans. Thank you Chancellor Flores.”
Flores was accompanied during this field visit by Alamo Colleges District Board of Trustee Members Marcelo Casillas (Chair), Joe Jesse Sanchez (Assistant Secretary) and Denver McClendon (Trustee representing District 2 that includes SPC).
“St. Philip’s College is honored Senator Flores visited the GSVOTC, where in the first nine months of this fiscal year we provided service to 4,189 clients, and had a combined 208 veteran workshops, classes and seminars,” said center director William L. Moseley, adding, “The GSVOTC is currently on track to double the amount of clients served from last year.”
For details on St. Philip’s College Good Samaritan Veterans Outreach and Transition Center operations, partners and becoming a partner, provider or supporter of the center and its resources, contact the center team through the web page https://www.alamo.edu/spc/gsvotc/, the email address spc-gsvotc@alamo.com, or phone number, (210) 486-2185. Inquiries are encouraged. (Images courtesy SPC)
About St. Philip’s College: Founded in 1898, St. Philip’s College is among the oldest community colleges in the United States, and Saint Artemisia Bowden led the nondenominational public college for 52 years (1902–1954). Today, St. Philip’s College, a multi-campus member of the Alamo Colleges District, is both is a Historically Black Colleges and Universities member institution and a Hispanic Serving Institution with global business units, serving a semester enrollment of about 13,000 credit students. Find SPC online at alamo.edu/spc.
Photo credit: St. Philip’s-John B. Dendy
