Ranger College is a community college

Community college

A community college is a type of educational institution. The term can have different meanings in different countries.-Australia:Community colleges carry on the tradition of adult education, which was established in Australia around mid 19th century when evening classes were held to help adults...

 located in Ranger, Texas

Ranger, Texas

Ranger is a city in Eastland County, Texas, United States. The population was 2,584 at the 2000 census. Ranger College, a community college, is the second largest employer in the community....

, a small town 90 miles (144.8 km) west of Fort Worth, Texas

Fort Worth, Texas

Fort Worth is the 16th-largest city in the United States of America and the fifth-largest city in the state of Texas. Located in North Central Texas, just southeast of the Texas Panhandle, the city is a cultural gateway into the American West and covers nearly in Tarrant, Parker, Denton, and...

. The college's website asserts that it "is one of the oldest public two-year colleges in continuous operation in the state of Texas." In conjunction with its main campus in Ranger, the college offers adjunct classes in neighboring communities.

As defined by the Texas State Legislature, the official service area of Ranger College is the following:

• the part of the Ranger Independent School District
  Ranger Independent School District
  Ranger Independent School District is a public school district based in Ranger, Texas .Located in Eastland County, a small portion of the district extends into Stephens County....
  
   located in Eastland County
  Eastland County, Texas
  *Carbon*Cisco*Desdemona, a ghost town*Eastland*Gorman*Mangum*Olden*Ranger*Rising Star*Romney-See also:*National Register of Historic Places listings in Eastland County, Texas*Santa Claus Bank Robbery-External links:** at the University of Texas*...
  
  , excluding the area known as the "old Bullock School Land", and
• all of Brown
  Brown County, Texas
  Brown County is a county in West Central Texas. As of 2000, the population was 37,674. Its county seat is Brownwood. Brown is named for Henry Stevenson Brown, a commander at the Battle of Velasco...
  
  , Comanche
  Comanche County, Texas
  Comanche County is a county located on the Edwards Plateau in Central Texas. In 2000, its population was 14,026. Comanche was founded in 1856. Comanche is named for the Comanche Native American tribe...
  
  , Erath
  Erath County, Texas
  Erath County is a county located on the Edwards Plateau in the U.S. state of Texas. In 2000, its population was 33,001. It is named for George Bernard Erath, an early surveyor and a soldier at the Battle of San Jacinto. The seat of the county is Stephenville....
  
  , Young
  Young County, Texas
  As of the census of 2000, there were 17,943 people, 7,167 households, and 5,081 families residing in the county. The population density was 20 people per square mile . There were 8,504 housing units at an average density of 9 per square mile...
  
  , Palo Pinto
  Palo Pinto County, Texas
  As of the census of 2000, there were 27,026 people, 10,594 households, and 7,447 families residing in the county. The population density was 28 people per square mile . There were 14,102 housing units at an average density of 15 per square mile...
  
  , and Stephens
  Stephens County, Texas
  As of the census of 2000, there were 9,674 people, 3,661 households, and 2,591 families residing in the county. The population density was 11 people per square mile . There were 4,893 housing units at an average density of 6 per square mile...
  
   Counties, excluding the portion of the Graham Independent School District
  Graham Independent School District
  Graham Independent School District is a public school district based in Graham, Texas, United States.Located in Young County, a very small portion of the district lies in Stephens County....
  
   located in Young County.

History

The school opened on September 13, 1926 with 30 students. The State Department of Education recognized it on March 23, 1927. Ranger College was a governed by the public school system until August 18, 1950, when the Board of Education separated junior college

Junior college

The term junior college refers to different educational institutions in different countries.-India:In India, most states provide schooling through 12th grade...

s. The school thereafter has been governed independently by a Board of Regents and its own presidents, of which Dr. G. C. Boswell was the first.

In 1978 the Ranger College football team won the NJCAA national championship.

On 16 June 2007, Ranger College won the National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association

National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association

The National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association, based in Walla Walla, WA, was established in 1949. NIRA sanctions more than 100 college rodeos every year in the United States, and represents over 3,500 student athletes attending more than 135 member colleges and universities...

 men's team title in the College National Finals Rodeo

College National Finals Rodeo

The College National Finals Rodeo is held every June. Since 2001 the CNFR has been hosted in Casper, WY at the Casper Events Center.. The CNFR is an event where men and women involved in Rodeo come to compete in order to obtain the honor of national champion in their event...

 held in Casper, Wyoming

Casper, Wyoming

Casper is the county seat of Natrona County, Wyoming, United States.. Casper is the second-largest city in Wyoming , according to the 2010 census, with a population of 55,316...

. Ranger had only been competing again since 2005, after a 25-year hiatus.

Athletics

Ranger College's athletic teams are nicknamed the Rangers. The Rangers compete in men's & women's basketball

Basketball

Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...

, baseball

Baseball

Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...

, softball

Softball

Softball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of 10 to 14 players. It is a direct descendant of baseball although there are some key differences: softballs are larger than baseballs, and the pitches are thrown underhand rather than overhand...

, cross country running

Cross country running

Cross country running is a sport in which people run a race on open-air courses over natural terrain. The course, typically long, may include surfaces of grass and earth, pass through woodlands and open country, and include hills, flat ground and sometimes gravel road...

, golf

Golf

Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....

, rodeo

Rodeo

Rodeo is a competitive sport which arose out of the working practices of cattle herding in Spain, Mexico, and later the United States, Canada, South America and Australia. It was based on the skills required of the working vaqueros and later, cowboys, in what today is the western United States,...

, soccer, and volleyball. The basketball teams play at Ron Butler Gymnasium. The baseball and softball teams play at Ellis Burks Field

Ellis Burks Field

Ellis Burks Field is a baseball venue located in Ranger, TX and the home of the Ranger College Rangers baseball team. The facility was named after former MLB outfielder Ellis Burks who helped with the funding of the construction of the ballpark. The field is located in the southern section of the...

.