UTRGV to turn former Monitor building into $41.3M optometry school

A building that housed The Monitor for more than two decades is getting a $41.3 million transformation as The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley prepares to open its new School of Optometry.

The University of Texas System Board of Regents on Thursday approved $41.3 million in Permanent University Fund bond proceeds to renovate the former AIM Media Texas property at 1400 E. Nolana Ave., where The Monitor operated for more than 21 years.

The building will become the academic and clinical home of UTRGV’s new Doctor of Optometry program, replacing a longtime newspaper operation with classrooms, pre-clinic laboratories, research areas, patient-care space, and faculty and administrative offices.

Regents also approved tuition and fees for the program, clearing two major milestones as UTRGV works toward welcoming its first class of about 40 students in fall 2027. The program still requires approval from the Accreditation Council on Optometric Education before it can launch.

And UTRGV is planning to enter the market at a substantially lower price than Texas’ existing optometry programs.

A Texas resident is expected to pay about $84,989 in tuition and required fees over the four-year program. That compares with approximately $123,431 at the University of Houston and $178,579 at the University of the Incarnate Word Rosenberg School of Optometry, based on 2025-26 data from the Association of Schools and Colleges of Optometry.

UTRGV’s estimated cost would be about 31% lower than the University of Houston and 52% lower than the University of the Incarnate Word.

Nationally, UTRGV estimates its four-year cost would come in about $27,500 below the least expensive existing program in the association’s latest dataset. The comparison is not exact: The national figures reflect 2025-26 rates, while UTRGV’s tuition would take effect in 2027-28. Still, the university says the price could position its program among the most affordable — if not the most affordable — in the country.

“We’re building a School of Optometry that gives students an affordable path into the profession while preparing them to meet a significant healthcare need in the Rio Grande Valley,” said Dr. William L. Miller, founding dean of the UTRGV School of Optometry.

From newspaper offices to patient care

The transformation of the former Monitor property will happen in stages.

Academic space, including pre-clinic laboratories, is scheduled to be completed by July 2027, in time for the inaugural class that fall. Clinical space is expected to follow in January 2028.

The four-year Doctor of Optometry program will require 183 semester credit hours and plans to employ 21 full-time faculty members. Students are expected to complete about 1,500 supervised patient encounters as part of their clinical training, with preparation in ocular disease, myopia management, vision therapy and minor surgical care.

The school will also work with UTRGV’s existing healthcare and research operations, including its schools of Medicine and Podiatric Medicine, the South Texas Diabetes and Obesity Institute and UT Health RGV Cancer and Surgery Center. Research is expected to include conditions particularly relevant to South Texas, including diabetes-related eye disease.

“Creating affordable educational opportunities for students in the Rio Grande Valley is central to our mission at UTRGV,” President Guy Bailey said. “The School of Optometry will give more students an opportunity to enter a healthcare profession, strengthen the healthcare workforce in South Texas and expand access to vision care across the region.”

With the building investment and tuition now approved, accreditation is the next major step before UTRGV can begin enrolling its first optometry class in fall 2027.