University of Texas regents have approved creating a new university in the Rio Grande Valley with a medical school.
The plan announced Thursday calls for combining the UT Pan-American and the UT Brownsville campuses and would inject $100 million into establishing a new medical school.
The project was dubbed the "University for the Americas in the Rio Grande Valley." The project still requires approval by the Legislature.
Supporters say the new school is critical for serving the rapidly expanding population on Texas' border with Mexico and providing education and health care.
The valley is one of the fastest-growing areas in the county, but also one of the poorest in Texas. Residents have lobbied for years to get a medical school in the region that would the area.
Copyright 2012 The Associated Press.-