Texas State College of Science adds ‘Engineering’ to its name

By Mark Hendricks
University News Service
February 11, 2011

SAN MARCOS – The College of Science at Texas State University-San Marcos has been renamed the College of Science and Engineering.

The Board of Regents of the Texas State University System took the action at its regular meeting Friday in Austin.

Texas State began offering engineering programs to meet a critical need in Texas for more professional engineers. Those programs have been housed in the former College of Science since they were initiated in 1999 with 13 students. Three engineering programs – manufacturing engineering, industrial engineering and electrical engineering – now exist with an enrollment of more than 500 students.

In 2006, Bruce and Gloria Ingram of New Braunfels donated $5 million to Texas State to officially establish the Bruce and Gloria Ingram School of Engineering. The gift has been used to endow faculty chairs in engineering, endow engineering scholarships and for program and faculty development. In 2009, the Ingrams donated an additional $2 million for scholarships.

Because of the rapid growth of engineering programs at Texas State, university officials believe the name “College of Science” does not adequately represent the college’s current structure.

In addition to the Ingram School of Engineering, the College of Science and Engineering at Texas State includes the departments of Biology, Chemistry and Biochemistry, Computer Science, Engineering Technology, Mathematics, and Physics.

The Texas State University System is governed by a nine member Board of Regents appointed by the Governor. In addition, a nonvoting student regent is appointed annually to the Board. The Texas State University System is the oldest multi-campus system in Texas and plays a critical role in the educational and economic development of the state. Its eight component institutions are Texas State University-San Marcos, Lamar University, Sam Houston State University, Sul Ross State University, Sul Ross State University Rio Grande College, Lamar Institute of Technology, Lamar State College-Orange and Lamar State College-Port Arthur.