McAllen nursing student ready to serve Rio Grande Valley

When Texas A&M University set out to expand its nursing program to the Rio Grande Valley a decade ago, Yahaira Castro and students like her were part of the plan. She is local, ambitious and ready to serve. And she’s always wanted to be an Aggie.

The Texas A&M College of Nursing knew it could help the region shore up the nursing workforce with its highly regarded Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) program by enrolling students who would stay close to home and care for their communities.

Castro, a McAllen native, is among the 24 students in the inaugural cohort that started the BSN program at the Texas A&M University Higher Education Center at McAllen (HECM) this spring. The group is studying at the new Nursing Education and Research Building, which celebrated a ribbon cutting last month, on the HECM campus.

“Texas A&M was my top choice to do my BSN,” said Castro, a first-generation college student. “[Being an Aggie] is a different kind of feeling. You see Aggie Rings here in the Valley, so once you’re able to be part of that family, it’s very exciting. Words can’t explain how it feels.”

Castro was already a licensed vocational nurse and graduate of South Texas College in 2024 when the College of Nursing announced its timeline for the addition of a BSN offering in McAllen. She had even started taking public health classes available at HECM, knocking out pre-requisite coursework she would need for admission to the BSN program.

The timing, she remembers, was fortuitous. As the oldest of three sisters and anchor of her tight-knit family unit, Castro had been contemplating a local pathway to her bachelor’s degree.

“I was waiting for that opportunity,” Castro said. “I didn’t have to move away to be at a top-tier university. I wanted to be close to home, and this was perfect.”

Nurses have been a formative force in Castro’s life. Born three months premature, she spent time in the neonatal intensive care unit and hopes to work in one herself after graduation, with Driscoll Children’s Hospital in South Texas at the top of her list.

Longer term, Castro would like to become a family nurse practitioner and open a clinic serving underserved populations in the Valley. Community, she says, is a persistent theme in her life. As a high school student at IDEA McAllen, for instance, Castro volunteered with the South Texas Juvenile Diabetes Association.

“It is very important for me to start with my community; that’s where I believe we can influence as nurses,” Castro said. “I love going to community events and educating people, and I want to give back now that I have the opportunity.”

Castro and the rest of her cohort will graduate in spring 2027, supplying the health care industry with two dozen nurses carrying the reputation of an Aggie diploma. The College of Nursing plans to scale its program in McAllen over the coming years so that 100 Aggie nurses like Castro are bolstering the regional workforce annually.

“We take seriously our obligation to prepare these Aggie nurses to make an immediate impact in the communities they will serve after graduation,” said LeRoy Marklund, DNP, the College of Nursing’s assistant dean in McAllen. “Because students like Yahaira represent the future of health care, the Rio Grande Valley is in exceptional hands.”

For the family-focused Castro, who touts the support of her parents as a serious motivator, the Aggie culture—steeped in a sense of belonging and loyalty—also fit into her plan.

“We are able to not only have a family at home but also a family at school,” she said.