NEWS: TAMIU mourns loss of president

By Dora Guerrero
Assistant Editor
Published Tuesday, Oct. 8, 2024

TAMIU held a moment of silence to honor the memory of its President Pablo Arenaz at noon Monday, Oct. 7, at the Acequia Fountain.

Between Dr. F.M. Canseco and Anthony J. and Georgia A. Pellegrino halls, several hundred people congregated to remember Arenaz, the sixth president of Texas A&M International University. During the memorial, remarks were made by Provost and Vice President of Academic Affairs Claudia San Miguel, Vice President for Finance and Administration Juan Castillo and others.

Some students, like senior Ashley Niño, felt inclined to attend the moment of silence to pay their respects to Arenaz because of how much he cared about the TAMIU community as a whole.

“[I paid] respects to Dr. Arenaz ’cause he was also very involved with the TAMIU community,” Niño said, following the memorial service.

As a senior, she said this news was even more saddening since seniors will no longer be able to shake Arenz’s hand at graduation.

“Everybody else got the personal experience [of shaking his hand at graduation,]” Niño said. “So, knowing that my graduating class will be the first to walk the stage without him, it feels a little sad … everybody is always eager to shake hands with the president once they graduate. It’s an accomplishment that you get to do.”

At 3:15 p.m. Friday, Oct. 4, students received an email with the sad news that Arenaz unexpectedly passed away. This email included quotes from Chancellor John Sharp of the Texas A&M University System and San Miguel. Both spoke about how great Arenaz had been and how it will be difficult to fill the space his passing left open.

Since his arrival at TAMIU more than 16 years ago, Arenaz aimed to improve academic quality, boost research capacity, increase scholarships and provide more curricular and co-curricular opportunities for students, according to that University email. He focused on growing TAMIU’s STEM and health sciences by leading the current construction of the Health Science Education and Research Center as well as the expansion of the Western Hemispheric Trade Center.

Before assuming his presidential role, he served eight years as provost and vice president for academic affairs at TAMIU. Arenaz previously served as vice provost and dean of the Graduate School at University of Texas at El Paso; he also held various academic positions at UTEP. Arenaz held a doctorate in genetics and cell biology from Washington State University, a master’s in biology from University of Nevada at Reno, he also earned his bachelor’s in education at UNR.

Funeral Services for Arenaz are scheduled for 11 a.m. Thursday, Oct. 17, at Fred Dickey Funeral and Cremation Services, 1320 Trey, Laredo, Texas, 78041. Visitation begins at 10 a.m.

Arenaz was married to Norma Arenaz for 33 years and is survived by her and four adult children: Jonathan, Cristina, Rebekah and Pablo III. If any students feel the need for support during this time, Student Counseling Services are available. Students may reach counselors at (956) 326-2230 or by visiting their site at https://www.tamiu.edu/counseling/contact.shtml.

Arenaz was born Sept. 9, 1950, and passed away Oct. 3, 2024.