REYNOSA, Tamaulipas - Tributes have poured in for Juan Rosendo Martínez Gómez, the founder of Instituto Internacional de Estudios Superiores (IIEAS) in Reynosa.
Martínez died recently at the age of 68 following a long battle with cancer.
“This past week our binational community lost a great man and dear friend, Juan Rosendo Martínez Gómez, wrote Ralph Garcia, COO of McAllen Economic Development Corporation.
“Rosendo was a true pillar in our region. As a leader in higher education, he was deeply committed to strengthening our binational community. He believed in the potential of our region and worked tirelessly to support efforts to attract new industry while ensuring we had a skilled and educated workforce ready to meet those opportunities.
“Throughout the years, Rosendo collaborated with many partners across our community and was always ready to lend a helping hand. His dedication, leadership, and friendship made a lasting impact on so many of us.
“My thoughts and prayers are with his family and loved ones during this difficult time. I am grateful to have called him a friend, and he will be terribly missed.
“Rest in peace, Hermano.”
Reynosa Mayor Carlos Víctor Peña Ortiz wrote:
“I join, with profound respect, in the sorrow that envelops the Martínez McDonald family following the deeply felt passing of Mr. Juan Rosendo Martínez Gómez.
“Renowned as an illustrious figure in education in Reynosa and as the founder of the Instituto Internacional de Estudios Superiores (IIES), his legacy will endure through generations of young people who found in education an opportunity for growth and self-improvement.
“My family and I extend our most sincere condolences, wishing that you may find strength and solace in the face of this irreparable loss.
“May he rest in peace.”
Martínez became well known in the Rio Grande Valley 13-plus years ago when Mario Reyna, then dean of business at South Texas College, started the annual ‘Inno Conference. Reyna wanted a binational component and asked Martínez to join him as co-partner in the program. One day of the conference would take place at STC’s technology campus in south McAllen and the next day at the IIES campus in Reynosa.
The Rio Grande Guardian reported on the program in 2013:
“This bi-national forum is a first. We are opening the door on cross border cooperation and education. We are excited. We are ready. We expect 500 people to attend in Reynosa,” said Juan Rosendo Martínez Gómez, president of IIES.
IIES was established as a private university in Reynosa more than 30 years ago. A high school component started more than a decade before that. Around 300 students attend the high school and 400 the university. There are 60-plus students taking the university’s Master’s program. The university is situated in the heart of Reynosa’s maquila industry and places an emphasis on business, engineering and technology training. “We have a number of classes in English because today’s students need to speak English well. In the maquila industry, you need to be bilingual,” Martínez said.
Martínez’s father, Rosendo Martínez, is from Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas. Educating students is clearly a family trait because Rosendo Martinez started Nuevo Laredo City College. “We live to teach. I have given my heart to this university just like my father did to his,” Martinez told the Guardian, back in 2013.
“Rosendo and I believe in the same things,” Reyna said. “We believe in economic development, we believe in education, we believe in having commerce grow in our area. The only way for us to prosper as a region is to have a well-educated workforce. NAFTA is not going to go away. There will be more integration of our economies.”
Mario Reyna, dean of business at South Texas College, and Juan Rosendo Martínez Gómez, founder and rector of Instituto Internacional de Estudios Superiores in 2013. (Photo: RGG/Steve Taylor)
IIES wrote this about their founder on Facebook:
"With deep sorrow, we share with our community the announcement of the passing of our founder, Juan Rosendo Martínez Gómez. We join him in respect and solidarity during this difficult time."
The college’s full statement read:
“We regret to announce the passing of our founder, Juan Rosendo Martínez Gómez, on March 12, 2026.
Juan Rosendo Martínez Gómez was a pioneering leader in education in our region, convinced that education is the most powerful tool for transforming lives and strengthening communities. He always sought to develop professionals who were citizens with values, leadership, and a sense of responsibility toward their community.
“His legacy leaves an indelible mark on education in Tamaulipas and northern Mexico, which will endure in each generation of graduates and the IIES community, who will continue to realize his ideal of an education that transforms and seeks to contribute to our society.
“Our condolences go out to the Martínez McDonald family, who appreciate the respect and support during this difficult time.”
Jorge Torres, president of Interlink Trade Services in McAllen, was a first cousin to Martínez. Torres told the RGG Business Journal:
“Rosendo was my dear first cousin and he was like a brother to me. He was also my best friend and mentor (professionally, personally and spiritually). I thank God for sharing many moments and memories with him. I truly admired him for his dedication to educating the future generations and for always lending a helping hand. I will miss him dearly.”
Martínez wrote this, before he passed away:
Today I say goodbye in peace from my Father's lap, with a satisfied and grateful heart.
Thank God, for my family, my refuge of love, my strength and sense on my way.
Thank you for my friends, for every hug, every laugh, and every step shared.
Thank you for allowing me to serve, for the hands I was able to extend and for the lives I touched with the little or much I had.
Thank you for the great miracles you worked in me... again and again.
If I leave something when I leave, let it be love, teaching and testimonies of faith.
I leave calmly, knowing that helping others was always my greatest gift.
Thank you for everything.
Rest in your peace.
Juan Rosendo Martínez Gómez
