UTEP

🐊 Our newest Miners revived a tradition this summer: Gator Camp! This free, two-day overnight experience for incoming freshmen brought fun games and team-building activities to meet friends and prepare for campus life. ⛏️ 💡 Did You Know: The name of this camp is inspired by a famous prank that became UTEP lore. 📜 In the early 1950s, Texas Western College fraternity members “borrowed” one of the live alligators from Downtown El Paso’s San Jacinto Plaza and placed it inside of then-Professor of Geological Sciences Howard Quinn’s office.

From leading a company to a $1.2 billion sale to fighting cancer at MD Anderson and Dartmouth Cancer Centers, UTEP alumni are making a profound difference in their communities. #PicksUp to this year's extraordinary Gold Nuggets and Distinguished Alumni! Top left to bottom right: 2026 Distinguished Alumni Award winner Mike Brochu, 2026 Gold Nugget Award winners Juan Martinez, Glenda Villatoro, John Hjalmquist, Juan Sanchez, Tracy Yellen, Robert Gonzales, Tasha Hooper, Christian Salas and Yolanda Sanchez. Learn more about the awardees: utepn.ws/4wsf9xj

With summer in full swing, campus has plenty of quiet indoor nooks where you can study and beat the heat. Next time you need to focus and get work done while you're on campus, try out these spots: 🔬 IDRB, first floor 📚 UTEP Library, third floor 🎒 Texas Western Hall, second floor #FoundatUTEP

✈️ A group of jet-setting students in the Study Abroad Psychology Organization remembered to bring their UTEP flag to Japan back in May. 🏯 This summer, snap a photo of yourself traveling in your orange and blue, and send it to socialmedia@utep.edu with the subject line #MinersAroundTheWorld. You might be featured on our social media and in an upcoming issue of our alumni magazine! @UTEPLiberalArts

@Chuck1769120091 The USA vs. Belgium watch party starts at 5 p.m. in Centennial Plaza! 🇺🇸🇧🇪

There's no better place to watch the World Cup than on campus with fellow Miners. 🧡 Hundreds gathered at Centennial Plaza at a Mexico vs. England watch party organized by UTEP's Student Engagement Leadership Center. 🇲🇽🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 The fun continues at 5 p.m. tonight in Centennial Plaza for the USA vs. Belgium match. 🇺🇸🇧🇪

🇺🇸 Have a safe and happy 250th Independence Day! 🎂🎆

Everyone can help in the fight against dementia by encouraging loved ones to adopt brain-healthy lifestyles, manage risk factors and strengthen relationships with healthcare providers, writes Ian A. Mendez, associate professor and chair of the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences. Learn more (en español) in the latest UTEP Health column – a collaboration with El Diario de El Paso: utepn.ws/4b8YeXJ

Walked in for a second, stayed longer than expected. ✨ This summer, take a pause while you're on campus and check out original artworks from UTEP students at the Rubin Center for Visual Arts. The Juried UTEP Student Exhibition is on display through July 25. 🖼️ Learn more: utepn.ws/4w8XpGu

📰 • 𝐍𝐞𝐰 𝐄𝐫𝐚, 𝐍𝐞𝐰 𝐏𝐞𝐭𝐞: 𝐔𝐓𝐄𝐏 𝐀𝐭𝐡𝐥𝐞𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐬 𝐁𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐏𝐚𝐲𝐝𝐢𝐫𝐭 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝟐𝟏𝐬𝐭 𝐂𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐲 #PicksUp | @MountainWest utepminers.com/news/2026/7/1/…

Meet the new Paydirt Pete! ⛏️ For the first time this century, UTEP is updating its iconic mascot. As a new era in the Mountain West Conference begins, Paydirt Pete is getting a bold new look. Take a look back at how Pete has evolved over the years.

It's official! ⛏️

🔋 UTEP researchers have developed a way to 3D-print a key battery component into nearly any shape – no rigid casing, no leaky liquid. The result could free engineers from standard battery sizes and let energy storage be built directly into a product's design.⚡ Learn more: utepn.ws/4vJ29D0

We're THIS excited to greet our newest Miners! 🥳 🧡 All summer long, the New Student Orientation team welcomes incoming students with an early-morning pep rally, followed by sessions and activities where they learn the ropes and prepare for college life. #PicksUp to the newest members of the UTEP family! Freshmen and transfer students can still register for upcoming orientation dates at utep.edu/orientation.

It's all about where we're going, help us Reach the Peak by donating to the link below 🤩 🔗: pulse.ly/vsvzm7vdrn #PicksUp

T- 5 days til we enter the Mountain West Conference ⛰️ #PicksUp

UTEP celebrated its eagerly awaited move to the @MountainWest Conference with an exciting announcement: Paul Foster and Alejandra de la Vega-Foster have pledged $2.5 million to support @UTEPAthletics' "Climb Higher" campaign, now entering its second phase called "Reach the Peak." The move to Mountain West becomes official on Wednesday, July 1. Learn more: utepn.ws/3SvzOkN

🍎 UTEP's undergraduate elementary teacher prep program just earned an A+ from the National Council on Teacher Quality (@NCTQ). The College of Education (@utepcoe) was recognized for training future educators to teach reading the right way – grounded in the science of how children actually learn. 📚 Learn more: utepn.ws/3StuBKh

Summer camp season is here, and high school students are getting a sneak peek at one of UTEP's newest programs at the Mining Engineering Summer Camp! ☀️⛏️ This three-day overnight camp gives sophomores, juniors and seniors interested in STEM the opportunity to explore an exciting field and experience campus life. Activities include a visit to a working mining site, hands-on lab demonstrations and a stay in UTEP student housing. Most importantly, the camp introduces students to UTEP's new Mining Engineering Program and the exciting career opportunities it can open for the future. Learn more about UTEP's Mining Engineering Program: utep.edu/mining