Education in Texas
Encyclopedia
Texas has six public university systems and four independent public universities. The state has three nationally recognized public research universities: The University of Texas at Austin
, Texas A&M University
, and the University of Houston
.
The state also has many private universities. Rice University
—one of the country’s leading teaching and research universities—ranked the 17th-best university overall in the nation by U.S. News & World Report
. Additionally, Southwestern University
—the oldest university in the state—was chartered by the Republic of Texas.
Texas has over 1,000 public school district
s—all but one of the school districts in Texas are independent
, separate from any form of municipal government (the one exception is Stafford Municipal School District
). School districts may (and often do) cross city and county boundaries. Independent school districts have the power to tax their residents and to assert eminent domain
over privately owned property. The Texas Education Agency
(TEA) oversees these districts, providing supplemental funding, but its jurisdiction is limited mostly to intervening in poorly performing districts.
Texas also has numerous private schools of all types. The TEA has no authority over private school operations; private schools may or may not be accredited, and achievement tests are not required for private school graduating seniors. Many private schools obtain accreditation and perform achievement tests to show parents the school's interest in educational performance.
The state has some of the fewest restrictions on homeschooling
. Neither TEA nor the local school district has authority to regulate home school activities. There is no minimum number of days in a year, or hours in a day, that must be met, and achievement tests are not required for home school graduating seniors. The validity of home schooling was challenged in Texas, but a landmark case, Leeper v. Arlington ISD, ruled that home schooling was legal and that the state had little authority to regulate the practice.
Texas
has over 1,000 school districts—ranging in size from the gigantic Houston Independent School District
to the 13-student Divide Independent School District
in rural south Texas. All but one of the school district
s in Texas are separate from any form of municipal government, hence they are called "independent school districts", or "ISD" for short. School districts may (and often do) cross city and county boundaries. School districts have the power to tax their residents and to use eminent domain
. The sole exception to this rule is Stafford Municipal School District
, which serves all of the city of Stafford
.
Texas Education Agency
(TEA) has oversight of the public school systems as well as the charter school
s. Because of the independent nature of the school districts the TEA's actual jurisdiction is limited. The TEA is divided into twenty Educational Service Center "regions" that serve the local school districts. The Robin Hood plan
is a controversial tax redistribution system that provides court-mandated equitable school financing for all school districts in the state. Property tax revenue from property-wealthy school districts is and distributed those in property-poor districts, in an effort to equalize the financing of all districts throughout Texas.
Especially in the metropolitan areas, Texas also has numerous private schools of all types (non-sectarian, Catholic, and Protestant). The TEA has no authority over private school operations; private schools may or may not be accredited, and achievement tests are not required for private school graduating seniors. Many private schools will obtain accreditation and perform achievement tests as a means of encouraging future parents that the school is genuinely interested in educational performance.
It is generally considered to be among the least restrictive states in which to home school. Neither TEA nor the local school district has authority to regulate home school activities; state law only requires that the curriculum 1) must teach "reading, spelling, grammar, mathematics and a study of good citizenship" (the latter interpreted to mean a course in civics
) and 2) must be taught in a bona fide
manner. There are no minimum number of days in a year, or hours in a day, that must be met, and achievement tests are not required for home school graduating seniors. The validity of home schooling was challenged in Texas, but a landmark case, Leeper v. Arlington ISD
, ruled that home schooling was legal and that the state had little or no authority to regulate the practice.
As of 2010 49% of children enrolled in public Pre-K through 12 primary and secondary schools in Texas are classified as Hispanic
. In the decade from the 1999-2000 school year to the 2009-2010 school year, Hispanics made up 91% of the growth in the state's public K-12 schools. The overall student body increased by 856,061 students, with 775,075 of those students being Hispanic.
(TAKS) is a standardized test
used in Texas
primary
and secondary schools
to assess students' attainment of reading, writing
, math, science
, and social studies
skills required under Texas education standards. It is developed and scored by Pearson Educational Measurement with close supervision by the Texas Education Agency. Though created before the No Child Left Behind Act
was passed, it complies with the law. It replaced the previous test, called the Texas Assessment of Academic Skills
or TAAS, in 2003.
plan, Texas House Bill 588
, guarantees Texas students who graduated in the percent of their high school class automatic admission to state-funded universities. The bill encourages diversity
while avoiding problems stemming from the Hopwood v. Texas
(1996) case.
Six state university system
s and four independent public universities exist in Texas. Discovery of minerals on Permanent University Fund
land, particularly oil, has helped fund the rapid growth the state's largest university systems: University of Texas
and Texas A&M
. The PUF principal in fall 2005 was approximately $15 billion, second in size only to Harvard University
's endowment. The other four university systems are the , University of North Texas
, , and .
Texas has three Carnegie-designated Tier One public research universities: The University of Texas at Austin
, Texas A&M University
, and the University of Houston
. The University of Texas at Austin and Texas A&M University are flagship universities of the state of Texas. Both were established by the Texas Constitution
and hold stakes in the Permanent University Fund. The state has been putting effort to expand the number of flagship universities by elevating some of its seven institutions designated as "emerging research universities." The two that are expected to emerge first are the University of Houston and Texas Tech University, likely in that order according to the discussion on the House floor of the Texas Legislature.
As of 2008, Texas' six-year graduation rate of bachelor's students from is 49 percent, which is below the national average of 55.9 percent.
encompasses four separate and distinct institutions. Each institution is a stand-alone university and confers its own degrees. Its flagship institution is the University of Houston
, a nationally recognized research university. The three other institutions are universities; they are not branch campuses of the University of Houston.
The fourth-largest university system in Texas, the University of Houston System has over 65,000 students from the four separate universities. Its four distinct institutions award more than 13,000 degrees annually. The UH System has the largest presence in Houston with three universities located within the city.
Admissions into each institution of the University of Houston System is separate, and each institution in the System has distinct admission criteria and requirements.
The University of Houston System's annual impact on the Houston-area's economy equates to that of a major corporation: $1.1 billion in new funds attracted annually to the Houston area, $3.13 billion in total economic benefit, and 24,000 local jobs generated. This is in addition to the 12,500 new graduates the UH System produces every year who enter the workforce in Houston and throughout Texas. These degree-holders tend to stay in Houston. After five years, 80.5 percent of graduates are still living and working in the region.
(UNT System) has three schools in the North Texas
region, all of which are in the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex
.
The flagship institution is the University of North Texas
(UNT) located in Denton
. UNT is the largest university in the Metroplex and fourth largest in the state. The fields taught at UNT focus on such areas as business management, education, engineering, hospitality
, music
and science.
The UNT System also oversees the University of North Texas at Dallas
, the only public university located in the city limits
of Dallas
, and the University of North Texas Health Science Center at Fort Worth
, the only college in Texas that specializes in osteopathic medicine
.
The University of Texas System (UT), established by the Texas Constitution
in 1876, consists of nine academic universities
and six health institutions. UT System institutions enrolled a total of 182,752 students in fall 2004 making it one of the largest systems of higher education
in the nation. In 2004, the University of Texas at Austin
, which is the largest institution in the UT System and in the state of Texas, maintained an enrollment of 50,377 students.
The University of Texas at Austin was once the largest institution in the United States, but it is now one of the top three largest by population. Seven doctoral
programs at UT Austin rank in the top 10 in the nation and 22 degree programs rank in the top 25, according to a comprehensive study of the quality of graduate schools conducted by the United States National Research Council
. Four of the seven medical schools of Texas are within the University of Texas System
. In 2004, the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas
was ranked the 12th highest ranking medical school in the United States, with four of Texas's 11 Nobel laureates
.
The Texas A&M University System, established by the 1871 Texas legislature, is the second largest state university system of higher learning in Texas. Its flagship institution, Texas A&M University
located in College Station, opened in 1876 and is the state's oldest public institution of higher education. Funded research generally exceeds that of all other Texas universities including UT Austin, and Texas A&M ranks among the top ten national universities in research. It is the second largest university in the state of Texas and also one of the top 10 largest schools in the nation. The University of Texas's rivalry with Texas A&M dates back to the late 19th century.
Prairie View A&M University a historically black university located in Prairie View, Texas (Northwest of Houston) and is a member of the Texas A&M University System. PVAMU offers baccalaureate degrees in 50 academic majors, 37 master’s degrees and four doctoral degree programs through nine colleges and schools.Founded in 1876, Prairie View A&M University is the second oldest state-sponsored institution of higher education in Texas.
. The system is unique to Texas because it is the only horizontal State University System
; the system does not have a flagship institution and considers every campus to be unique in their own way. Over the years, several member schools have been moved to other university systems. Today, the system encompasses eight institutions; Texas State University-San Marcos, located halfway between Austin
and San Antonio in San Marcos, Texas
, is the largest university the system with an enrollment of 30,816 students. Lamar University
located in Beaumont, Texas
and previously in its own system, joined the TSUS in 1995. It boast an enrollment of 14,384 students as of spring 2010 and is most notable for its highly respected engineering
program.
The Texas Tech University System was established in 1996, though Texas Tech University in Lubbock has existed since 1923. The Texas Tech system consists of two academic universities, Angelo State University
in San Angelo
, a nationally recognized regional university and Texas Tech University
in Lubbock
, the flagship campus, a research institution which has the second largest contiguous campus in the United States and is the only school in Texas to house an undergraduate institution, law school, and medical school at the same location. The system also includes the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center
s, found in Amarillo
, El Paso
, Lubbock
, and Odessa
and eight learning centers in Abilene
, Amarillo
, Fredericksburg
, Highland Lakes
, and Junction
. It has international campuses in Quedlinburg, Germany
and Seville, Spain
.
.
The taxing area and the jurisdiction are not necessarily the same in all cases. As an example, the jurisdiction of North Central Texas College
includes the counties of Cooke, Denton, and Montague, but only Cooke County property is subject to the property tax assessment. On the other hand, the jurisdiction and tax base for Tarrant County College
are the same: Tarrant County.
, Concordia University, Huston-Tillotson University
, St. Edward's University
, the Seminary of the Southwest, the Acton School of Business
, Austin Graduate School of Theology
, Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary
, Virginia College's
Austin Campus, The Art Institute of Austin
, and a branch of Park University
.
The Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex is home to several private universities such as Southern Methodist University
(which has the Metroplex's largest law school), University of Dallas
, and Texas Christian University
.
, an hour north of Dallas. Chartered in November 1849, it is the oldest college in Texas under original charter and name as recognized by the State Historical Survey Committee
. The school is named after Texas hero Stephen F. Austin
, who along with his sister Emily, deeded 1,500 acres (6 km²) of land to the college. Another important figure in Texas history, Sam Houston
, served on the original board of trustees for the school. U.S. News & World Report
ranked Austin College among the top 100 colleges in the category of "Best Liberal Arts Colleges" for 2006. Austin College also ranked among the "Best 361 Colleges" in the 2006 Princeton Review, was profiled in Loren Pope
's Colleges That Change Lives
, and was profiled in the 2005 edition of Kaplan
's Unbiased Guide to the 331 Most Interesting Colleges. Austin College is also ninth on the U.S. News 2006 list for "most students studying abroad." It is a member of the International 50, a group of the top colleges in the nation for international focus.
, which boasts one of the largest financial endowment
s of any university in the world. The small undergraduate student body has one of the highest percentages of National Merit Scholarship winners in the United States. Rice University maintains a variety of research facilities and laboratories. Rice is also associated with the Houston Area Research Center, a consortium supported by Rice, the University of Texas at Austin, Texas A&M University, and the University of Houston.
Another liberal arts
college in Houston is the University of St. Thomas. It was founded by the Basilian Order in 1947 as a Roman Catholic university. Former UST president Archbishop J. Michael Miller currently serves in the Roman Curia
as the prefect
of Catholic universities throughout the world. The campus is also home to some major historic buildings, such as the Link-Lee Mansion (once the largest house in Texas) and Hughes House (the childhood home of Howard Hughes
).
, St. Mary's University
, University of the Incarnate Word
, and Our Lady of the Lake University
.
, is the oldest university in Texas operating under its original charter. Baylor University purports to be the largest Baptist
university in the world, having an enrollment of over 14,000 students. Baylor is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools and is a member of the Association of Southern Baptist Colleges and Schools. The 735 acres (3 km²) campus is located just southeast of downtown Waco, roughly bounded by Interstate 35
, Speight Avenue, Eighth Street and the Brazos River
.
Texas is home to several research medical centers. The state has eight medical schools, three dental schools, and two optometry
schools. Texas has two Biosafety Level 4 (BSL-4) laboratories: one at The University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) in Galveston, and the other at the Southwest Foundation for Biomedical Research
in San Antonio—the first privately owned BSL-4 lab in the United States.
The Texas Medical Center
, in Houston, is the world's largest concentration of research
and healthcare institutions, with 45 member institutions in the Texas Medical Center. More heart transplants are performed at Texas Medical Center
than anywhere else in the world. San Antonio's South Texas Medical Center
facilities rank sixth in clinical medicine research impact in the United States
. The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center
is one of the world’s highly regarded academic institutions devoted to cancer patient care, research, education and prevention.
University of Texas at Austin
The University of Texas at Austin is a state research university located in Austin, Texas, USA, and is the flagship institution of the The University of Texas System. Founded in 1883, its campus is located approximately from the Texas State Capitol in Austin...
, Texas A&M University
Texas A&M University
Texas A&M University is a coeducational public research university located in College Station, Texas . It is the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System. The sixth-largest university in the United States, A&M's enrollment for Fall 2011 was over 50,000 for the first time in school...
, and the University of Houston
University of Houston
The University of Houston is a state research university, and is the flagship institution of the University of Houston System. Founded in 1927, it is Texas's third-largest university with nearly 40,000 students. Its campus spans 667 acres in southeast Houston, and was known as University of...
.
The state also has many private universities. Rice University
Rice University
William Marsh Rice University, commonly referred to as Rice University or Rice, is a private research university located on a heavily wooded campus in Houston, Texas, United States...
—one of the country’s leading teaching and research universities—ranked the 17th-best university overall in the nation by U.S. News & World Report
U.S. News & World Report
U.S. News & World Report is an American news magazine published from Washington, D.C. Along with Time and Newsweek it was for many years a leading news weekly, focusing more than its counterparts on political, economic, health and education stories...
. Additionally, Southwestern University
Southwestern University
Southwestern University is a private, four-year, undergraduate, liberal arts college located in Georgetown, Texas, USA. Founded in 1840, Southwestern is the oldest university in Texas. The school is affiliated with the United Methodist Church although the curriculum is nonsectarian...
—the oldest university in the state—was chartered by the Republic of Texas.
Texas has over 1,000 public school district
School district
School districts are a form of special-purpose district which serves to operate the local public primary and secondary schools.-United States:...
s—all but one of the school districts in Texas are independent
Independent school district
An independent school district is a type of school district in the United States for primary and secondary education, which operates as an entity that is independent and separate from any municipality, county, or state...
, separate from any form of municipal government (the one exception is Stafford Municipal School District
Stafford Municipal School District
Stafford Municipal School District is a school district based in Stafford, Texas, United States. The district covers all of the city of Stafford and is controlled by the city, the only school district in Texas that is not an independent school district operated by an independent school board.There...
). School districts may (and often do) cross city and county boundaries. Independent school districts have the power to tax their residents and to assert eminent domain
Eminent domain
Eminent domain , compulsory purchase , resumption/compulsory acquisition , or expropriation is an action of the state to seize a citizen's private property, expropriate property, or seize a citizen's rights in property with due monetary compensation, but without the owner's consent...
over privately owned property. The Texas Education Agency
Texas Education Agency
The Texas Education Agency is a branch of the state government of Texas in the United States responsible for public education. The agency is headquartered in the William B...
(TEA) oversees these districts, providing supplemental funding, but its jurisdiction is limited mostly to intervening in poorly performing districts.
Texas also has numerous private schools of all types. The TEA has no authority over private school operations; private schools may or may not be accredited, and achievement tests are not required for private school graduating seniors. Many private schools obtain accreditation and perform achievement tests to show parents the school's interest in educational performance.
The state has some of the fewest restrictions on homeschooling
Homeschooling
Homeschooling or homeschool is the education of children at home, typically by parents but sometimes by tutors, rather than in other formal settings of public or private school...
. Neither TEA nor the local school district has authority to regulate home school activities. There is no minimum number of days in a year, or hours in a day, that must be met, and achievement tests are not required for home school graduating seniors. The validity of home schooling was challenged in Texas, but a landmark case, Leeper v. Arlington ISD, ruled that home schooling was legal and that the state had little authority to regulate the practice.
Primary and secondary education
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
has over 1,000 school districts—ranging in size from the gigantic Houston Independent School District
Houston Independent School District
The Houston Independent School District is the largest public school system in Texas and the seventh-largest in the United States. Houston ISD serves as a community school district for most of the city of Houston and several nearby and insular municipalities...
to the 13-student Divide Independent School District
Divide Independent School District
Divide Independent School District is a public school district based in the community of Mountain Home in western Kerr County, Texas, United States....
in rural south Texas. All but one of the school district
School district
School districts are a form of special-purpose district which serves to operate the local public primary and secondary schools.-United States:...
s in Texas are separate from any form of municipal government, hence they are called "independent school districts", or "ISD" for short. School districts may (and often do) cross city and county boundaries. School districts have the power to tax their residents and to use eminent domain
Eminent domain
Eminent domain , compulsory purchase , resumption/compulsory acquisition , or expropriation is an action of the state to seize a citizen's private property, expropriate property, or seize a citizen's rights in property with due monetary compensation, but without the owner's consent...
. The sole exception to this rule is Stafford Municipal School District
Stafford Municipal School District
Stafford Municipal School District is a school district based in Stafford, Texas, United States. The district covers all of the city of Stafford and is controlled by the city, the only school district in Texas that is not an independent school district operated by an independent school board.There...
, which serves all of the city of Stafford
Stafford, Texas
Stafford is a city in the U.S. state of Texas within the Houston–Sugar Land–Baytown metropolitan area. The city is mostly in Fort Bend County with a small portion in Harris County. As of the 2000 U.S. Census, Stafford's population was 15,681....
.
Texas Education Agency
Texas Education Agency
The Texas Education Agency is a branch of the state government of Texas in the United States responsible for public education. The agency is headquartered in the William B...
(TEA) has oversight of the public school systems as well as the charter school
Charter school
Charter schools are primary or secondary schools that receive public money but are not subject to some of the rules, regulations, and statutes that apply to other public schools in exchange for some type of accountability for producing certain results, which are set forth in each school's charter...
s. Because of the independent nature of the school districts the TEA's actual jurisdiction is limited. The TEA is divided into twenty Educational Service Center "regions" that serve the local school districts. The Robin Hood plan
Robin Hood plan
The Robin Hood plan was a media nickname given to legislation enacted by the U.S. state of Texas in 1993 to provide court-mandated equitable school financing for all school districts in the state...
is a controversial tax redistribution system that provides court-mandated equitable school financing for all school districts in the state. Property tax revenue from property-wealthy school districts is and distributed those in property-poor districts, in an effort to equalize the financing of all districts throughout Texas.
Especially in the metropolitan areas, Texas also has numerous private schools of all types (non-sectarian, Catholic, and Protestant). The TEA has no authority over private school operations; private schools may or may not be accredited, and achievement tests are not required for private school graduating seniors. Many private schools will obtain accreditation and perform achievement tests as a means of encouraging future parents that the school is genuinely interested in educational performance.
It is generally considered to be among the least restrictive states in which to home school. Neither TEA nor the local school district has authority to regulate home school activities; state law only requires that the curriculum 1) must teach "reading, spelling, grammar, mathematics and a study of good citizenship" (the latter interpreted to mean a course in civics
Civics
Civics is the study of rights and duties of citizenship. In other words, it is the study of government with attention to the role of citizens ― as opposed to external factors ― in the operation and oversight of government....
) and 2) must be taught in a bona fide
Bona Fide
Bona Fide is a studio album from rock band Wishbone Ash. It is the first studio album in six years and is the only studio album to feature guitarist Ben Granfelt...
manner. There are no minimum number of days in a year, or hours in a day, that must be met, and achievement tests are not required for home school graduating seniors. The validity of home schooling was challenged in Texas, but a landmark case, Leeper v. Arlington ISD
Arlington Independent School District
Arlington Independent School District or AISD is a school district based in Arlington, Texas .The district covers the majority of Arlington and portions of Grand Prairie. The district serves the entirety of the small towns of Pantego and Dalworthington Gardens. A portion of Fort Worth lies within...
, ruled that home schooling was legal and that the state had little or no authority to regulate the practice.
As of 2010 49% of children enrolled in public Pre-K through 12 primary and secondary schools in Texas are classified as Hispanic
Hispanic and Latino Americans
Hispanic or Latino Americans are Americans with origins in the Hispanic countries of Latin America or in Spain, and in general all persons in the United States who self-identify as Hispanic or Latino.1990 Census of Population and Housing: A self-designated classification for people whose origins...
. In the decade from the 1999-2000 school year to the 2009-2010 school year, Hispanics made up 91% of the growth in the state's public K-12 schools. The overall student body increased by 856,061 students, with 775,075 of those students being Hispanic.
TAKS
The Texas Assessment of Knowledge and SkillsTexas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills
The Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills is a standardized test used in Texas primary and secondary schools to assess students' attainment of reading, writing, math, science, and social studies skills required under Texas education standards. It is developed and scored by Pearson Educational...
(TAKS) is a standardized test
Standardized test
A standardized test is a test that is administered and scored in a consistent, or "standard", manner. Standardized tests are designed in such a way that the questions, conditions for administering, scoring procedures, and interpretations are consistent and are administered and scored in a...
used in Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
primary
Primary education
A primary school is an institution in which children receive the first stage of compulsory education known as primary or elementary education. Primary school is the preferred term in the United Kingdom and many Commonwealth Nations, and in most publications of the United Nations Educational,...
and secondary schools
Secondary education
Secondary education is the stage of education following primary education. Secondary education includes the final stage of compulsory education and in many countries it is entirely compulsory. The next stage of education is usually college or university...
to assess students' attainment of reading, writing
Writing
Writing is the representation of language in a textual medium through the use of a set of signs or symbols . It is distinguished from illustration, such as cave drawing and painting, and non-symbolic preservation of language via non-textual media, such as magnetic tape audio.Writing most likely...
, math, science
Science
Science is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe...
, and social studies
Social studies
Social studies is the "integrated study of the social sciences and humanities to promote civic competence," as defined by the American National Council for the Social Studies...
skills required under Texas education standards. It is developed and scored by Pearson Educational Measurement with close supervision by the Texas Education Agency. Though created before the No Child Left Behind Act
No Child Left Behind Act
The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 is a United States Act of Congress concerning the education of children in public schools.NCLB was originally proposed by the administration of George W. Bush immediately after he took office...
was passed, it complies with the law. It replaced the previous test, called the Texas Assessment of Academic Skills
Texas Assessment of Academic Skills
The TAAS, or Texas Assessment of Academic Skills, was a standardized test used in Texas between 1991 and 2002, when it was replaced by the TAKS test from 2003 to 2009. Prior to 1990, the test was known as the Texas Educational Assessment of Minimum Skills or TEAMS . It was used from grades 3...
or TAAS, in 2003.
Public colleges and universities
Texas's controversial alternative affirmative actionAffirmative action
Affirmative action refers to policies that take factors including "race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation or national origin" into consideration in order to benefit an underrepresented group, usually as a means to counter the effects of a history of discrimination.-Origins:The term...
plan, Texas House Bill 588
Texas House Bill 588
Texas House Bill 588, commonly referred to as the "Top 10% Rule", is a Texas law passed in 1997.The law guarantees Texas students who graduated in the top ten percent of their high school class automatic admission to all state-funded universities. The bill was created as a means to avoid the...
, guarantees Texas students who graduated in the percent of their high school class automatic admission to state-funded universities. The bill encourages diversity
Multiculturalism
Multiculturalism is the appreciation, acceptance or promotion of multiple cultures, applied to the demographic make-up of a specific place, usually at the organizational level, e.g...
while avoiding problems stemming from the Hopwood v. Texas
Hopwood v. Texas
Hopwood v. Texas, 78 F.3d 932 , was the first successful legal challenge to a university's affirmative action policy in student admissions since Regents of the University of California v. Bakke, 438 U.S. 265...
(1996) case.
Six state university system
State university system
A state university system in the United States is a group of public universities supported by an individual state, or a similar entity such as the District of Columbia. These systems constitute the majority of public-funded universities in the country...
s and four independent public universities exist in Texas. Discovery of minerals on Permanent University Fund
Permanent University Fund
The Permanent University Fund is one of the methods by which the State of Texas funds public higher education within the state. A portion of the returns from the PUF are annually directed towards the Available University Fund , which distributes the funds according to provisions set forth by the...
land, particularly oil, has helped fund the rapid growth the state's largest university systems: University of Texas
University of Texas System
The University of Texas System encompasses 15 educational institutions in Texas, of which nine are academic universities and six are health institutions. The system is headquartered in Austin and has a total enrollment of over 190,000 students...
and Texas A&M
Texas A&M University System
The Texas A&M University System is one of the largest systems of higher education in the United States. Through a statewide network of eleven universities, eight state agencies and a comprehensive health science center, the Texas A&M System educates over 100,000 students, conducts more than $600...
. The PUF principal in fall 2005 was approximately $15 billion, second in size only to Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
's endowment. The other four university systems are the , University of North Texas
University of North Texas System
The University of North Texas System consists of four educational institutions in the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex area...
, , and .
Texas has three Carnegie-designated Tier One public research universities: The University of Texas at Austin
University of Texas at Austin
The University of Texas at Austin is a state research university located in Austin, Texas, USA, and is the flagship institution of the The University of Texas System. Founded in 1883, its campus is located approximately from the Texas State Capitol in Austin...
, Texas A&M University
Texas A&M University
Texas A&M University is a coeducational public research university located in College Station, Texas . It is the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System. The sixth-largest university in the United States, A&M's enrollment for Fall 2011 was over 50,000 for the first time in school...
, and the University of Houston
University of Houston
The University of Houston is a state research university, and is the flagship institution of the University of Houston System. Founded in 1927, it is Texas's third-largest university with nearly 40,000 students. Its campus spans 667 acres in southeast Houston, and was known as University of...
. The University of Texas at Austin and Texas A&M University are flagship universities of the state of Texas. Both were established by the Texas Constitution
Texas Constitution
The Constitution of the State of Texas is the document that describes the structure and function of the government of the U.S. State of Texas.Texas has had seven constitutions: the constitution of Coahuila y Tejas, the 1836 Constitution of the Republic of Texas, the state constitutions of 1845,...
and hold stakes in the Permanent University Fund. The state has been putting effort to expand the number of flagship universities by elevating some of its seven institutions designated as "emerging research universities." The two that are expected to emerge first are the University of Houston and Texas Tech University, likely in that order according to the discussion on the House floor of the Texas Legislature.
As of 2008, Texas' six-year graduation rate of bachelor's students from is 49 percent, which is below the national average of 55.9 percent.
University of Houston System
The University of Houston SystemUniversity of Houston System
The University of Houston System is a state university system in Texas, encompassing four separate and distinct universities. It has two system centers, which operate as and distance learning course delivery sites for its universities...
encompasses four separate and distinct institutions. Each institution is a stand-alone university and confers its own degrees. Its flagship institution is the University of Houston
University of Houston
The University of Houston is a state research university, and is the flagship institution of the University of Houston System. Founded in 1927, it is Texas's third-largest university with nearly 40,000 students. Its campus spans 667 acres in southeast Houston, and was known as University of...
, a nationally recognized research university. The three other institutions are universities; they are not branch campuses of the University of Houston.
The fourth-largest university system in Texas, the University of Houston System has over 65,000 students from the four separate universities. Its four distinct institutions award more than 13,000 degrees annually. The UH System has the largest presence in Houston with three universities located within the city.
Admissions into each institution of the University of Houston System is separate, and each institution in the System has distinct admission criteria and requirements.
| Institution | Founded | Enrollment (Fall 2011) |
Campus Acreage |
Endowment |
Research Expenditures (FY 2011) |
Carnegie Classification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| University of Houston University of Houston The University of Houston is a state research university, and is the flagship institution of the University of Houston System. Founded in 1927, it is Texas's third-largest university with nearly 40,000 students. Its campus spans 667 acres in southeast Houston, and was known as University of... |
1927 | 39,820 | 667 | $589.8 million | $127.5 million | Research (Very High) |
| 1971 | 8,188 | 524 | $22.6 million | $2.2 million | Master's (Large) | |
| 1974 | 12,918 | 20 | $34.7 million | $1.5 million | Baccalaureate–Diverse | |
| 1971 | 4,331 | 20 | $15.2 million | $1.2 million | Master's (Large) |
The University of Houston System's annual impact on the Houston-area's economy equates to that of a major corporation: $1.1 billion in new funds attracted annually to the Houston area, $3.13 billion in total economic benefit, and 24,000 local jobs generated. This is in addition to the 12,500 new graduates the UH System produces every year who enter the workforce in Houston and throughout Texas. These degree-holders tend to stay in Houston. After five years, 80.5 percent of graduates are still living and working in the region.
University of North Texas System
The University of North Texas SystemUniversity of North Texas System
The University of North Texas System consists of four educational institutions in the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex area...
(UNT System) has three schools in the North Texas
North Texas
North Texas is a distinct cultural and geographic area forming the central-northeastern section of the U.S. state of Texas. North Texas is generally considered to include the area south of Oklahoma, east of Abilene, and north of Waco...
region, all of which are in the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex
Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex
The Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington Metropolitan Statistical Area, a title designated by the U.S. Census as of 2003, encompasses 12 counties within the U.S. state of Texas. The area is divided into two metropolitan divisions: Dallas–Plano–Irving and Fort Worth–Arlington. Residents of the area...
.
The flagship institution is the University of North Texas
University of North Texas
The University of North Texas is a public institution of higher education and research in Denton. Founded in 1890, UNT is part of the University of North Texas System. As of the fall of 2010, the University of North Texas, Denton campus, had a certified enrollment of 36,067...
(UNT) located in Denton
Denton, Texas
The city of Denton is the county seat of Denton County, Texas in the United States. Its population was 119,454 according to the 2010 U.S. Census, making it the eleventh largest city in the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex...
. UNT is the largest university in the Metroplex and fourth largest in the state. The fields taught at UNT focus on such areas as business management, education, engineering, hospitality
Hospitality
Hospitality is the relationship between guest and host, or the act or practice of being hospitable. Specifically, this includes the reception and entertainment of guests, visitors, or strangers, resorts, membership clubs, conventions, attractions, special events, and other services for travelers...
, music
Music
Music is an art form whose medium is sound and silence. Its common elements are pitch , rhythm , dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture...
and science.
The UNT System also oversees the University of North Texas at Dallas
University of North Texas at Dallas
The University of North Texas at Dallas began in 2000 as a Dallas extension of the University of North Texas, offering upper-level undergraduate and graduate courses in fields such as education, business, criminal justice, applied arts and sciences, computer science, information technology and...
, the only public university located in the city limits
City limits
The terms city limits and city boundary refer to the defined boundary or border of a city. The area within the city limits is sometimes called the city proper. The terms town limits/boundary and village limits/boundary mean the same as city limits/boundary, but apply to towns and villages...
of Dallas
Dallas, Texas
Dallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...
, and the University of North Texas Health Science Center at Fort Worth
University of North Texas Health Science Center at Fort Worth
The University of North Texas Health Science Center at Fort Worth, commonly known as the UNT Health Science Center and abbreviated UNTHSC, is a graduate-level institution of the University of North Texas System...
, the only college in Texas that specializes in osteopathic medicine
Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine
Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine is a professional doctoral degree for physicians in the United States. Holders of the MD degree, Doctor of Medicine, have the same rights, privileges and responsibilities as osteopathic physicians in the United States.The American Osteopathic Association’s Commission...
.
University of Texas System
The University of Texas System (UT), established by the Texas Constitution
Texas Constitution
The Constitution of the State of Texas is the document that describes the structure and function of the government of the U.S. State of Texas.Texas has had seven constitutions: the constitution of Coahuila y Tejas, the 1836 Constitution of the Republic of Texas, the state constitutions of 1845,...
in 1876, consists of nine academic universities
University
A university is an institution of higher education and research, which grants academic degrees in a variety of subjects. A university is an organisation that provides both undergraduate education and postgraduate education...
and six health institutions. UT System institutions enrolled a total of 182,752 students in fall 2004 making it one of the largest systems of higher education
Higher education
Higher, post-secondary, tertiary, or third level education refers to the stage of learning that occurs at universities, academies, colleges, seminaries, and institutes of technology...
in the nation. In 2004, the University of Texas at Austin
University of Texas at Austin
The University of Texas at Austin is a state research university located in Austin, Texas, USA, and is the flagship institution of the The University of Texas System. Founded in 1883, its campus is located approximately from the Texas State Capitol in Austin...
, which is the largest institution in the UT System and in the state of Texas, maintained an enrollment of 50,377 students.
The University of Texas at Austin was once the largest institution in the United States, but it is now one of the top three largest by population. Seven doctoral
Doctorate
A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder to teach in a specific field, A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder...
programs at UT Austin rank in the top 10 in the nation and 22 degree programs rank in the top 25, according to a comprehensive study of the quality of graduate schools conducted by the United States National Research Council
United States National Research Council
The National Research Council of the USA is the working arm of the United States National Academies, carrying out most of the studies done in their names.The National Academies include:* National Academy of Sciences...
. Four of the seven medical schools of Texas are within the University of Texas System
University of Texas System
The University of Texas System encompasses 15 educational institutions in Texas, of which nine are academic universities and six are health institutions. The system is headquartered in Austin and has a total enrollment of over 190,000 students...
. In 2004, the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas
University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas
The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center is one of the biomedical research institutions of the University of Texas System, incorporating three degree-granting institutions, four affiliated hospitals, including Parkland Memorial, the teaching hospital, and biomedical research...
was ranked the 12th highest ranking medical school in the United States, with four of Texas's 11 Nobel laureates
Nobel Prize
The Nobel Prizes are annual international awards bestowed by Scandinavian committees in recognition of cultural and scientific advances. The will of the Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, established the prizes in 1895...
.
Texas A&M University System
The Texas A&M University System, established by the 1871 Texas legislature, is the second largest state university system of higher learning in Texas. Its flagship institution, Texas A&M University
Texas A&M University
Texas A&M University is a coeducational public research university located in College Station, Texas . It is the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System. The sixth-largest university in the United States, A&M's enrollment for Fall 2011 was over 50,000 for the first time in school...
located in College Station, opened in 1876 and is the state's oldest public institution of higher education. Funded research generally exceeds that of all other Texas universities including UT Austin, and Texas A&M ranks among the top ten national universities in research. It is the second largest university in the state of Texas and also one of the top 10 largest schools in the nation. The University of Texas's rivalry with Texas A&M dates back to the late 19th century.
Prairie View A&M University a historically black university located in Prairie View, Texas (Northwest of Houston) and is a member of the Texas A&M University System. PVAMU offers baccalaureate degrees in 50 academic majors, 37 master’s degrees and four doctoral degree programs through nine colleges and schools.Founded in 1876, Prairie View A&M University is the second oldest state-sponsored institution of higher education in Texas.
Texas State University System
The Texas State University System, created in 1911 to oversee the state's normal schools (teachers' colleges), is the oldest multi-system University System in TexasTexas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
. The system is unique to Texas because it is the only horizontal State University System
State university system
A state university system in the United States is a group of public universities supported by an individual state, or a similar entity such as the District of Columbia. These systems constitute the majority of public-funded universities in the country...
; the system does not have a flagship institution and considers every campus to be unique in their own way. Over the years, several member schools have been moved to other university systems. Today, the system encompasses eight institutions; Texas State University-San Marcos, located halfway between Austin
Austin
Austin is the capital of the U.S. state of Texas.Austin may also refer to:-In the United States:*Austin, Arkansas*Austin, Colorado*Austin, Chicago, Illinois*Austin, Indiana*Austin, Minnesota*Austin, Nevada*Austin, Oregon...
and San Antonio in San Marcos, Texas
San Marcos, Texas
San Marcos is a city in the U.S. state of Texas, and is the seat of Hays County. Located within the metropolitan area, the city is located on the Interstate 35 corridor—between Austin and San Antonio....
, is the largest university the system with an enrollment of 30,816 students. Lamar University
Lamar University
Lamar University, often referred to as Lamar or LU, is a comprehensive coeducational public research university located in Beaumont, Texas, United States. Lamar confers bachelors, masters and doctoral degrees and is classified as a Doctoral Research University by the Carnegie Commission on Higher...
located in Beaumont, Texas
Beaumont, Texas
Beaumont is a city in and county seat of Jefferson County, Texas, United States, within the Beaumont–Port Arthur Metropolitan Statistical Area. The city's population was 118,296 at the 2010 census. With Port Arthur and Orange, it forms the Golden Triangle, a major industrial area on the...
and previously in its own system, joined the TSUS in 1995. It boast an enrollment of 14,384 students as of spring 2010 and is most notable for its highly respected engineering
Engineering
Engineering is the discipline, art, skill and profession of acquiring and applying scientific, mathematical, economic, social, and practical knowledge, in order to design and build structures, machines, devices, systems, materials and processes that safely realize improvements to the lives of...
program.
Texas Tech University System
The Texas Tech University System was established in 1996, though Texas Tech University in Lubbock has existed since 1923. The Texas Tech system consists of two academic universities, Angelo State University
Angelo State University
Angelo State University is a public, coeducational, doctoral level degree-granting university located in San Angelo, Texas, United States. It was founded in 1928 as San Angelo College. It gained University status and awarded its first baccalaureate degrees in 1967 and graduate degrees in 1969, the...
in San Angelo
San Angelo, Texas
San Angelo is a city in the state of Texas. Located in West Central Texas it is the county seat of Tom Green County. As of 2010 according to the United States Census Bureau, the city had a total population of 93,200...
, a nationally recognized regional university and Texas Tech University
Texas Tech University
Texas Tech University, often referred to as Texas Tech or TTU, is a public research university in Lubbock, Texas, United States. Established on February 10, 1923, and originally known as Texas Technological College, it is the leading institution of the Texas Tech University System and has the...
in Lubbock
Lubbock, Texas
Lubbock is a city in and the county seat of Lubbock County, Texas, United States. The city is located in the northwestern part of the state, a region known historically as the Llano Estacado, and the home of Texas Tech University and Lubbock Christian University...
, the flagship campus, a research institution which has the second largest contiguous campus in the United States and is the only school in Texas to house an undergraduate institution, law school, and medical school at the same location. The system also includes the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center
Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center
The Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center offers programs in Allied Health Sciences, Biomedical Sciences, Medicine, Nursing, and Pharmacy. TTUHSC's main campus is in Lubbock, but campuses are also located in Abilene, Amarillo, Dallas, El Paso and the Permian Basin...
s, found in Amarillo
Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center Amarillo Campus
Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center Amarillo Campus is a regional campus of the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center located at the Harrington Regional Medical Center in Amarillo, Texas....
, El Paso
Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center El Paso Campus
Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center El Paso Campus is a branch of the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center in El Paso, Texas. It has been in operation since 1969.-History:...
, Lubbock
Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center
The Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center offers programs in Allied Health Sciences, Biomedical Sciences, Medicine, Nursing, and Pharmacy. TTUHSC's main campus is in Lubbock, but campuses are also located in Abilene, Amarillo, Dallas, El Paso and the Permian Basin...
, and Odessa
Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center Permian Basin Campus
Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center Permian Basin Campus is a branch of the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center in Odessa, Texas. It opened as a School of Medicine in 1979, beginning in the basement of Medical Center Hospital....
and eight learning centers in Abilene
Texas Tech University at Abilene
Texas Tech University at Abilene is an official off campus teaching site of Texas Tech University located in Abilene, Texas. The site hosts Bachelor of University Studies, Bachelor of General Studies, Graduate Certificate in Wind Energy and Ed.D...
, Amarillo
Texas Tech University at Amarillo
Texas Tech University at Amarillo is an official off campus teaching site of Texas Tech University located in Amarillo, Texas. It hosts master's degrees in systems and engineering management and manufacturing and engineering through both on-site and online courses as part of .-External links:*...
, Fredericksburg
Texas Tech University at Fredericksburg
Texas Tech University at Fredericksburg is an official off campus teaching site of Texas Tech University located in Fredericksburg, Texas. The site was established in 2002 to extend Texas Tech's presence by hosting year-round academic programs in the Texas Hill Country.- Academic programs :Texas...
, Highland Lakes
Texas Tech University at Highland Lakes
Texas Tech University at Highland Lakes is an official off campus teaching site of Texas Tech University located in Marble Falls, Texas. The site was established in 2002 to extend Texas Tech's presence in the Texas Hill Country by hosting year-round academic programs.-Academic programs:Texas Tech...
, and Junction
Texas Tech University Center at Junction
Texas Tech University Center at Junction is an official off campus teaching site of Texas Tech University in Junction, Texas. It hosts undergraduate and graduate courses in an intensive three-week period format from May through July. Additionally, an Intersession is held in May; this allows...
. It has international campuses in Quedlinburg, Germany
Texas Tech University Center in Quedlinburg
Texas Tech University Center in Quedlinburg is a branch campus of Texas Tech University in Quedlinburg, Germany. It offers undergraduate courses from the regular Texas Tech University catalog. Every semester, undergraduate German courses are taught...
and Seville, Spain
Texas Tech University Center in Seville
Texas Tech University Center in Seville is a branch campus of Texas Tech University in Seville, Spain. It offers undergraduate courses from the regular Texas Tech University catalog. Every semester, undergraduate Spanish and history courses are taught...
.
Independent universities
Four public universities are unaffiliated with any of the six systems. They are:- Midwestern State UniversityMidwestern State UniversityMidwestern State University is a public liberal arts college in Wichita Falls, Texas, and a member of the Council of Public Liberal Arts Colleges...
in Wichita FallsWichita Falls, TexasWichita Falls is a city in and the county seat of Wichita County, Texas, United States, United States. Wichita Falls is the principal city of the Wichita Falls Metropolitan Statistical Area, which encompasses all of Archer, Clay and Wichita counties. According to the U.S. Census estimate of 2010,...
, the state's only public liberal arts collegeLiberal arts collegeA liberal arts college is one with a primary emphasis on undergraduate study in the liberal arts and sciences.Students in the liberal arts generally major in a particular discipline while receiving exposure to a wide range of academic subjects, including sciences as well as the traditional... - Stephen F. Austin State UniversityStephen F. Austin State UniversityStephen F. Austin State University is a public university located in Nacogdoches, Texas, United States. Founded as a teachers' college in 1923, the university was named after one of Texas' founding fathers, Stephen F. Austin. Its campus resides on part of the homestead of another Texas founding...
in NacogdochesNacogdoches, TexasNacogdoches is a city in Nacogdoches County, Texas, in the United States. The 2010 census recorded the city's population to be 32,996. It is the county seat of Nacogdoches County and is situated in East Texas. Nacogdoches is a sister city of Natchitoches, Louisiana.Nacogdoches is the home of...
, which operates one of two schools of forestry and the only one in the East TexasEast TexasEast Texas is a distinct geographic and ecological area in the U.S. state of Texas.According to the Handbook of Texas, the East Texas area "may be separated from the rest of Texas roughly by a line extending from the Red River in north central Lamar County southwestward to east central Limestone...
(the state's timber-producing region) - Texas Southern UniversityTexas Southern UniversityTexas Southern University is a historically black university located in Houston, Texas, United States....
in Houston, the first historically black universityHistorically Black Colleges and UniversitiesHistorically black colleges and universities are institutions of higher education in the United States that were established before 1964 with the intention of serving the black community....
to house a law school and one of only two historically black universities in the state; it was also the first state-supported institution in the city of Houston - Texas Women's University in DentonDenton, TexasThe city of Denton is the county seat of Denton County, Texas in the United States. Its population was 119,454 according to the 2010 U.S. Census, making it the eleventh largest city in the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex...
, the largest state-supported university for women in the United States (though the school is officially co-educational)
Texas State Technical College
The state also operates the Texas State Technical College System, a group of two-year technical colleges located throughout the state. System headquarters are co-located with the flagship campus in WacoWaco, Texas
Waco is a city in and the county seat of McLennan County, Texas. Situated along the Brazos River and on the I-35 corridor, halfway between Dallas and Austin, it is the economic, cultural, and academic center of the 'Heart of Texas' region....
.
Community Colleges
Several community colleges operate throughout the state of Texas. Although the state has established territorial jurisdictions for each college, the colleges themselves are governed by local boards of trustees, and are financed mainly through local property taxes.The taxing area and the jurisdiction are not necessarily the same in all cases. As an example, the jurisdiction of North Central Texas College
North Central Texas College
North Central Texas College is a community college serving Cooke County, Denton County, and Montague County, Texas. NCTC operates four campuses, the main campus in Gainesville, campuses in Corinth, Bowie, and a branch campus in Graham....
includes the counties of Cooke, Denton, and Montague, but only Cooke County property is subject to the property tax assessment. On the other hand, the jurisdiction and tax base for Tarrant County College
Tarrant County College
Tarrant County College ' or Tarrant County College District is a community college serving the Fort Worth area in Tarrant County, Texas and providing degree programs toward an Associate of Arts, an Associate of Applied Science or Associate of Arts in Teaching...
are the same: Tarrant County.
Austin Texas
Institutions of higher education include Austin Presbyterian Theological SeminaryAustin Presbyterian Theological Seminary
Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary is a Presbyterian seminary in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1902 by Presbyterian ministers, Robert Lewis Dabney and Richmond Kelley Smoot....
, Concordia University, Huston-Tillotson University
Huston-Tillotson University
Huston–Tillotson University is a historically black university in Austin, Texas, United States. The school is affiliated with the United Methodist Church, the United Church of Christ, and the United Negro College Fund....
, St. Edward's University
St. Edward's University
St. Edward's University is a private Roman Catholic institution of higher learning located south of Lady Bird Lake in Austin, Texas. The university offers a liberal arts education and its campus is located on a hill overlooking the city of Austin. The campus's most notable landmark is Main...
, the Seminary of the Southwest, the Acton School of Business
Acton School of Business
The Acton School of Business is a private, one-year MBA in Entrepreneurship program in Austin, Texas, taught by successful, practicing entrepreneurs. Offering only a full-time program, the school is based on experiential learning. Students analyze over 300 business case studies and participate in...
, Austin Graduate School of Theology
Austin Graduate School of Theology
Austin Graduate School of Theology, formerly known as Institute for Christian Studies, is located in Austin, Texas, in the United States of America...
, Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary
Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary
Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary is a Presbyterian seminary in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1902 by Presbyterian ministers, Robert Lewis Dabney and Richmond Kelley Smoot....
, Virginia College's
Virginia College
Virginia College is a non Regionally Accredited chain of private for-profit post-secondary institutions located primarily in the Southeastern United States. It is a Proprietary college which, in comparison to traditional colleges or universities, offers classes related to specific professions...
Austin Campus, The Art Institute of Austin
The Art Institute of Austin
The Art Institute of Austin is a campus of The Art Institutes, a system of more than 40 for-profit educational institutions located throughout North America, providing education in design, media arts, fashion and culinary arts....
, and a branch of Park University
Park University
Park University is an independent, private institution of higher education based in Parkville, Missouri. Established in 1875 as a small church-related college, it has now expanded into an electronic learning institution and provider of education courses for the U.S...
.
Dallas/Fort Worth Area
Southern Methodist University
Southern Methodist University is a private university in Dallas, Texas, United States. Founded in 1911 by the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, SMU operates campuses in Dallas, Plano, and Taos, New Mexico. SMU is owned by the South Central Jurisdiction of the United Methodist Church...
(which has the Metroplex's largest law school), University of Dallas
University of Dallas
The University of Dallas is a private, independent Catholic regional university located in Irving, Texas, established in 1956, which is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. According to U.S...
, and Texas Christian University
Texas Christian University
Texas Christian University is a private, coeducational university located in Fort Worth, Texas, United States and founded in 1873. TCU is affiliated with, but not governed by, the Disciples of Christ...
.
Austin College
Austin College is a private liberal arts college affiliated with the Presbyterian Church USA and located in Sherman, TexasSherman, Texas
Sherman is a city in and the county seat of Grayson County, Texas, United States. The city's estimated population as of 2009 was 38,407. It is also one of two principal cities in the Sherman-Denison Metropolitan Statistical Area.-History:...
, an hour north of Dallas. Chartered in November 1849, it is the oldest college in Texas under original charter and name as recognized by the State Historical Survey Committee
Texas Historical Commission
The Texas Historical Commission is an agency dedicated to historic preservation within the state of Texas. It administers the National Register of Historic Places for sites in Texas....
. The school is named after Texas hero Stephen F. Austin
Stephen F. Austin
Stephen Fuller Austin was born in Virginia and raised in southeastern Missouri. He was known as the Father of Texas, led the second, but first legal and ultimately successful colonization of the region by bringing 300 families from the United States. The capital of Texas, Austin in Travis County,...
, who along with his sister Emily, deeded 1,500 acres (6 km²) of land to the college. Another important figure in Texas history, Sam Houston
Sam Houston
Samuel Houston, known as Sam Houston , was a 19th-century American statesman, politician, and soldier. He was born in Timber Ridge in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia, of Scots-Irish descent. Houston became a key figure in the history of Texas and was elected as the first and third President of...
, served on the original board of trustees for the school. U.S. News & World Report
U.S. News & World Report
U.S. News & World Report is an American news magazine published from Washington, D.C. Along with Time and Newsweek it was for many years a leading news weekly, focusing more than its counterparts on political, economic, health and education stories...
ranked Austin College among the top 100 colleges in the category of "Best Liberal Arts Colleges" for 2006. Austin College also ranked among the "Best 361 Colleges" in the 2006 Princeton Review, was profiled in Loren Pope
Loren Pope
Loren Brooks Pope was an American writer and independent college placement counselor.In 1965, Pope, a former newspaperman and education editor of The New York Times, founded the College Placement Bureau, one of the first independent college placement counseling services in the United States...
's Colleges That Change Lives
Colleges That Change Lives
Colleges That Change Lives is a college educational guide by Loren Pope. It was originally published in 1996, with a second edition in 2000, and a third edition in 2006...
, and was profiled in the 2005 edition of Kaplan
Kaplan, Inc.
Kaplan, Inc. is a for-profit corporation headquartered in New York City and was founded in 1938 by Stanley Kaplan. Kaplan provides higher education programs, professional training courses, test preparation materials and other services for various levels of education...
's Unbiased Guide to the 331 Most Interesting Colleges. Austin College is also ninth on the U.S. News 2006 list for "most students studying abroad." It is a member of the International 50, a group of the top colleges in the nation for international focus.
Houston Area
Houston is the location of Rice UniversityRice University
William Marsh Rice University, commonly referred to as Rice University or Rice, is a private research university located on a heavily wooded campus in Houston, Texas, United States...
, which boasts one of the largest financial endowment
Financial endowment
A financial endowment is a transfer of money or property donated to an institution. The total value of an institution's investments is often referred to as the institution's endowment and is typically organized as a public charity, private foundation, or trust....
s of any university in the world. The small undergraduate student body has one of the highest percentages of National Merit Scholarship winners in the United States. Rice University maintains a variety of research facilities and laboratories. Rice is also associated with the Houston Area Research Center, a consortium supported by Rice, the University of Texas at Austin, Texas A&M University, and the University of Houston.
Another liberal arts
Liberal arts
The term liberal arts refers to those subjects which in classical antiquity were considered essential for a free citizen to study. Grammar, Rhetoric and Logic were the core liberal arts. In medieval times these subjects were extended to include mathematics, geometry, music and astronomy...
college in Houston is the University of St. Thomas. It was founded by the Basilian Order in 1947 as a Roman Catholic university. Former UST president Archbishop J. Michael Miller currently serves in the Roman Curia
Roman Curia
The Roman Curia is the administrative apparatus of the Holy See and the central governing body of the entire Catholic Church, together with the Pope...
as the prefect
Prefect
Prefect is a magisterial title of varying definition....
of Catholic universities throughout the world. The campus is also home to some major historic buildings, such as the Link-Lee Mansion (once the largest house in Texas) and Hughes House (the childhood home of Howard Hughes
Howard Hughes
Howard Robard Hughes, Jr. was an American business magnate, investor, aviator, engineer, film producer, director, and philanthropist. He was one of the wealthiest people in the world...
).
San Antonio Area
Private universities in the city are Trinity UniversityTrinity University (Texas)
Trinity University is a private, independent, primarily undergraduate, university in San Antonio, Texas. Its campus is located in the Monte Vista Historic District and adjacent to Brackenridge Park....
, St. Mary's University
St. Mary's University, Texas
St. Mary's University is a Catholic and Marianist liberal arts institution located on northwest of downtown San Antonio, Texas, United States. St. Mary’s is a nationally recognized master’s level school ranked among the top colleges in the west for best value and academic reputation by U.S. News...
, University of the Incarnate Word
University of the Incarnate Word
The University of the Incarnate Word is a private Catholic university located within the cities of San Antonio and Alamo Heights in Texas, United States....
, and Our Lady of the Lake University
Our Lady of the Lake University
Our Lady of the Lake University is an independent Catholic, co-ed university located in San Antonio, Texas, United States. It was founded in 1895 by the Sisters of the Congregation of Divine Providence, a religious order originating in Lorraine, France, during the 18th century...
.
Central Texas Area/Mary Hardin Baylor and Baylor University
Baylor University, chartered in 1845 by the Republic of TexasRepublic of Texas
The Republic of Texas was an independent nation in North America, bordering the United States and Mexico, that existed from 1836 to 1846.Formed as a break-away republic from Mexico by the Texas Revolution, the state claimed borders that encompassed an area that included all of the present U.S...
, is the oldest university in Texas operating under its original charter. Baylor University purports to be the largest Baptist
Baptist
Baptists comprise a group of Christian denominations and churches that subscribe to a doctrine that baptism should be performed only for professing believers , and that it must be done by immersion...
university in the world, having an enrollment of over 14,000 students. Baylor is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools and is a member of the Association of Southern Baptist Colleges and Schools. The 735 acres (3 km²) campus is located just southeast of downtown Waco, roughly bounded by Interstate 35
Interstate 35
Interstate 35 is a north–south Interstate Highway in the central United States. I-35 stretches from Laredo, Texas, on the U.S.-Mexico border to Duluth, Minnesota, at Minnesota Highway 61 and 26th Avenue East. Many interstates used to have splits or spurs indicated with suffixed letters , but I-35...
, Speight Avenue, Eighth Street and the Brazos River
Brazos River
The Brazos River, called the Rio de los Brazos de Dios by early Spanish explorers , is the longest river in Texas and the 11th longest river in the United States at from its source at the head of Blackwater Draw, Curry County, New Mexico to its mouth at the Gulf of Mexico with a drainage...
.
Medical research
Texas is home to several research medical centers. The state has eight medical schools, three dental schools, and two optometry
Optometry
Optometry is a health care profession concerned with eyes and related structures, as well as vision, visual systems, and vision information processing in humans. Optometrists, or Doctors of Optometry, are state licensed medical professionals trained to prescribe and fit lenses to improve vision,...
schools. Texas has two Biosafety Level 4 (BSL-4) laboratories: one at The University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) in Galveston, and the other at the Southwest Foundation for Biomedical Research
Southwest Foundation for Biomedical Research
Texas Biomedical Research Institute , located in San Antonio, Texas, is an independent biomedical research institution, specializing in genetics and in virology and immunology...
in San Antonio—the first privately owned BSL-4 lab in the United States.
The Texas Medical Center
Texas Medical Center
The Texas Medical Center is the largest medical center in the world with one of the highest densities of clinical facilities for patient care, basic science, and translational research...
, in Houston, is the world's largest concentration of research
Research
Research can be defined as the scientific search for knowledge, or as any systematic investigation, to establish novel facts, solve new or existing problems, prove new ideas, or develop new theories, usually using a scientific method...
and healthcare institutions, with 45 member institutions in the Texas Medical Center. More heart transplants are performed at Texas Medical Center
Texas Medical Center
The Texas Medical Center is the largest medical center in the world with one of the highest densities of clinical facilities for patient care, basic science, and translational research...
than anywhere else in the world. San Antonio's South Texas Medical Center
South Texas Medical Center
The South Texas Medical Center consists of of medical-related facilities in northwest San Antonio.The STMC, which directly serves 38 counties, consists of forty-five medically related institutions; separate medical, dental and nursing schools, five higher educational institutions, twelve...
facilities rank sixth in clinical medicine research impact in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center
The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center
The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center is one of the nation's original three comprehensive cancer centers established by the National Cancer Act of 1971. It is both a degree-granting academic institution and a cancer treatment and research center located at the Texas Medical Center in...
is one of the world’s highly regarded academic institutions devoted to cancer patient care, research, education and prevention.
See also
- Independent school districtIndependent school districtAn independent school district is a type of school district in the United States for primary and secondary education, which operates as an entity that is independent and separate from any municipality, county, or state...
- List of colleges and universities in Texas