Council for South Texas Economic Progress (COSTEP) and Rio-South Texas Education and Community Development Foundation (RSTEF) – Joint Board Retreat

Challenge

The Rio South Texas region stands at a critical juncture of binational opportunity and ecosystem evolution. As partner organizations working in tandem, the Council for South Texas Economic Progress (COSTEP) and the Rio-South Texas Education and Community Development Foundation (RSTEF) share a unified mission: ensuring residents acquire the skills and access to economic opportunities necessary for prosperous lives. While COSTEP is a public charity focused on regional marketing and business attraction, RSTEF is a private foundation centered on education and workforce development. Together, they have the opportunity to address gaps in educational attainment and to catalyze high-multiplier job creation across the seven-county region by effectively aligning resourcing.

Response

COSTEP and RSTEF engaged TIP to facilitate a joint 2025 board retreat, discussing priority areas and providing a roadmap for future strategic and organizational planning. The process began with a review of existing plans and reports, including economic and workforce data and trends, and an ecosystem analysis and board member survey for each entity. This examination was supplemented by a review of best practices to help guide the organizations. This foundational work informed customized agendas for the facilitated joint board retreat, where findings about strengths and challenges were presented alongside case studies of successful regional models. Ensuing discussions allowed leadership from each entity to consider six strategic priority areas and organizational alignment. The facilitated approach resulted in a summary roadmap for each organization, serving as a bridge to formal FY2026 strategic planning. By outlining clear priorities, the findings and retreat outcomes support the active implementation and resource alignment needed to ensure that Rio South Texas is prepared to transform its binational advantages into long-term economic mobility and growth.