About the College

As the largest and most inclusive academic unit within the university, the College of Arts and Sciences contributes significantly to the cultural and academic characteristics that distinguishes Lamar as a Member of the Texas State University System. Our programs perform at the highest levels with constant enthusiasm for excellence. 

The College of Arts and Sciences include some 220 faculty, 100 staff members and houses approximately 5,000 majors. The College is comprised of twelve academic departments, many of which house multiple programs and disciplines. In addition, the College includes a variety of interdisciplinary, pre-professional, and teacher preparation programs that cross educational boundaries.

While providing a majority of the courses included within the university’s Core Curriculum, the College likewise offers hundreds of specialized courses to support its baccalaureate and graduate degree programs. Despite its breadth and diversity, the College collectively involves students in an academic experience of the highest quality based on the following principles:

  • To provide an excellent learning environment wherein all students may refine the knowledge and skills essential to cultivate their ability to think critically, communicate effectively, and advance their appreciation of artistic and scientific inquiry;
  • To provide a contemporary education through the integration of information technology into the study of disciplines traditionally associated with the arts and sciences; and
  • To stress the importance of lifelong learning through community outreach, service, research and creative endeavors.

The success of every major academic enterprise depends greatly upon the quality of its faculty. The College faculty are highly accomplished researchers and scholars who are widely recognized as specialists in their respective disciplines. Foremost, however, the they are exemplary teachers who foster intellectual growth and maturity at all levels of instruction, ranging from incoming first-generation freshmen to highly talented and highly motivated graduate students. The College faculty ensure that Lamar graduates are fully prepared to be leaders in their communities and in their chosen careers.

Organization and Function

The College of Arts and Sciences provides most of the academic components fundamental to a traditional liberal arts college and contains humanities, social sciences, and the natural sciences. The College also houses many successful programs that cross disciplines.

Hands-on life learning activities are a fundamental component of the mission of the College of Arts and Sciences. Students have ample opportunities to engage in research under the guidance of faculty, to participate in internships designed to support their career goals, or to get involved in regional and national student competition and conferences.

The Liberal Arts and Sciences

Like other areas of study, the disciplines represented by the arts and sciences prepare students for advanced study and research; for a career in business, industry, government service or teaching; or for study in a professional field. In addition, however, the very nature of the arts and sciences disciplines not only trains the mind and sharpens the intellect but also provides an experience designed to encourage life-long learning. This “liberating” experience enables one to acquire the skills and knowledge to think critically, examine values and principles, broaden perspectives and to understand the individual and the relationships among individuals and our society. Thus, specialization in one or more of the arts and sciences disciplines provides the opportunity for this experience and the prelude to a personally and professionally rewarding career.

The College of Arts and Sciences has established the following priorities:

  • Grow and sustain initiatives to advance the College vision particularly as it pertains to the recruitment, development, and retention of an outstanding student body, faculty and staff.
  • Provide an environment that stimulates novel and interdisciplinary teaching, research and creative activities,  and service to the LU community capable of maximizing the self-realization of students and faculty.
  • Provide the best and most intellectually stimulating opportunities for research, creative activity and instruction at both the undergraduate and graduate levels.
  • Offer an outstanding and innovative core course curriculum both in the content and mode of delivery.
  • Promote partnerships with the regional community as a life-learning experience.
  • Increase the visibility and understanding of the accomplishments of the College of Arts and Sciences students, faculty and staff.