We’ve counted the days until your arrival. This is it — the start of the best semester in Tarleton history. Record enrollment. Elevated research designation. Enhanced academic prowess. A stand-alone College of Engineering. New spaces and dining options. And an entire fall filled with one exciting event after another. Texan spirit is alive and well!
Fall 2022 enrollment is at an all-time high with nearly 15,000 students, and the Class of 2026 — 2,405 strong — is the largest and most diverse and well-prepared group of incoming first-time students in 123 years. Robust growth is proof that more and more students find our university — your university — the best place for a transformative university degree.
Expert Tarleton faculty and student researchers continue to impact our region, our state and our nation with life-changing breakthroughs, as befits our fresh designation as a Carnegie R2 institution. The elevated status of Doctoral Universities: High Research Activity by the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education puts us among 132 universities, or 4 percent, across the country so recognized.
Following a rigorous peer review, the College of Business now boasts AACSB accreditation, a distinction enjoyed by fewer than 5 percent of business schools worldwide. This prestigious honor by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business proclaims what we already knew — our College of Business graduates hit the workforce eager and able to make a difference.
Six market-responsive and innovative majors debut this semester, supporting our commitment to academic advancement and connecting students to expanding professional fields throughout North Central Texas and beyond. A PhD in animal and natural resources and one in counseling are slated for next fall (pending approval by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board), with more in the works.
Plans are underway to officially name our College of Engineering in honor of Distinguished Alumnus Dr. Dwain Mayfield. We’re pulling out all the stops for this celebration marking the first time that we’ve named an academic college for an individual.
New construction. Renovated facilities. Enhanced landscaping. More dining options. (Catch the details here.) We’ve spent our entire summer getting ready for you.
Pizza and pretzels? We have both. Grand openings for Blaze Pizza and Auntie Anne’s on the Stephenville campus take place at 10 this morning, and a ribbon cutting for the Oscar P General Store is on the calendar for month’s end.
Some universities slow down over the summer. Not us. We power on for your return in the fall. I hope you’re ready!
- Howdy Week, starting today, is the perfect time to reacquaint with old friends and make new ones.
- The women’s soccer team takes the field this weekend at Nicholls State University in Thibodaux, La., for two games then celebrates its inaugural season on Aug. 25 at home against the University of Arkansas-Pine Bluff.
- Texan football kicks off Sept. 1 against Mississippi Valley State. Then we turn up the heat for the TCU Horned Frogs, Sept. 10 at Amon G. Carter Stadium in Fort Worth. Tickets are available.
- Family Weekend gets underway Sept. 16 with the annual Ring Ceremony.
- Oct. 15 we’ll roll up our sleeves for Round Up — a full day of community service.
- And the grand finale — Homecoming 2022 — brings a week (Oct. 22-29) of festivities, including Lighting of the Smokestack, Silver Bugle Hunt, Beating of the Drum, Launching of the Ducks, Purple Pancakes, Yell Contest, Snake Dance, Bonfire, a parade and a packed Memorial Stadium for a battle against Sam Houston State.
I look forward to seeing you this semester at all of our campuses. Let’s make fall 2022 a semester we’ll remember the rest of our lives.
As always, bleed purple!
Dr. James Hurley
President
Tarleton State University
Box T-0001
Stephenville, Texas 76402
Office: 254-968-9100
University Homepage: www.tarleton.edu