A&M-Commerce highlights its many partnerships
Sep. 18—"We're better together" was a sentiment repeated by Texas A&M University-Commerce Provost Tammi Vacha-Haase as she spoke with members of the Hunt County Economic Development Alliance on Tuesday.
The presentation on updates and future plans for A&M-Commerce was originally planned be given by university President Mark Rudin, but he was unable to attend.
As Vacha-Haase spoke in Rudin's stead, she focused on the various partnerships that A&M-Commerce has entered into recently or is in the process of expanding.
One of the main enterprises that she highlighted was the university's new satellite campus in North Dallas, which welcomed its first cohort of students in spring 2021.
"The unique ability of A&M-Commerce to meet both rural and urban needs ... is incredibly interesting and unique," Vacha-Haase said. "That is something that many universities talk about or say they do, but here at A&M-Commerce, we have our connection here in Hunt County and we also have our connection in Dallas. What an incredible, unique way to serve people in this county and in this region of the state. That's why we believe that we are 'THE university of Northeast Texas,' which is why I call this Lion Country."
The new satellite campus in Dallas occupies two floors of a 20-story business tower at 8750 North Central Expressway and is largely geared toward students who are interested in earning degrees in business or education.
Planning for the campus and its offerings was done in partnership with Dallas College so that students can take their basics and earn an associate's degree there, and then transfer to A&M-Commerce to complete their bachelor's degree.
One aim of A&M-Commerce's partnership with Dallas College is to make it easier to serve Dallas ISD's demand for Hispanic teachers and teachers of color.
Although the new North Dallas campus received a lot of the attention Tuesday, it's actually one of several satellite campuses for A&M-Commerce. Their other campuses include Collin College in Frisco, A&M-Commerce at Mesquite Metroplex Center, El Centro College in Dallas, Dallas College, Collin Higher Education Center in McKinney and Navarro College in Corsicana.
A&M-Commerce has also had a longtime partnership with Paris Junior College (PJC).
"All of our degree plans are mapped for seamless transfer to A&M-Commerce," PJC President Pam Anglin said Tuesday.
In addition to opening a new campus, growth is also on the horizon for the main campus in Commerce in the form of a new agricultural education complex and a new welcoming center.
In October 2021, A&M-Commerce received $44.9 million from the state toward the completion of the $46 million agriculture education complex. The proposed agriculture complex is to be equipped for students studying a wide array of agricultural disciplines, including agricultural research, sustainable agriculture, animal science, urban agriculture and equine studies.
"We hope that with the Ag complex, that we might be able to help attract more agricultural industries to Commerce and Hunt County," Vacha-Haase said.
As for the anticipated $20 million welcoming center, Vacha-Haase explained that it would be a place to meet with prospective students and their families.
"It's about first impressions. You all know about this, you're all in business," Vacha-Haase said. "For us, it's about that first shot, where that student and their family comes in ... and how you welcome them.
"Texas is really a big state, with a lot of higher educational institutions, so it's our job to figure out what is it that A&M-Commerce does well ... and how do we share that with students and families," she continued. "Probably more importantly, we want a place where we can show that to them the first time they step on campus."
On a lighter note, Vacha-Haase spoke on the university's partnerships with various restaurant franchises. Currently, the Commerce campus sports both a Starbucks in its library and a Chic-fil-A in its student center. It is in the process of building a Jimmy John's in its nursing and health sciences building and recently announced plans to build a Whataburger on the corner of state Highway 24 and Culver Street.
When asked by an audience member about when the Whataburger would open, Vacha-Haase joked, "Not soon enough," but then said it should "be ready to open in about a year."
