The expanding education landscape in South Montgomery County has welcomed its latest addition with the opening of the new Sam Houston State University – The Woodlands Center campus on College Park Drive. The campus, located at 3380 College Park Drive, opened to students and classes on May 31.

The 145,000-square-foot facility was built at a cost of $40 million and includes 34 high-tech classrooms, all equipped with WiFi access, a 120-seat auditorium, three lecture rooms, an 80-seat computer lab, study areas, a library and four computer instructional classrooms, among an array of other services and amenities.

Richard Eglsaer, SHSU associate provost of academic affairs and services at SHSU, said the new campus offers upper level classes, as well as graduate and doctorate programs. Undergraduate classes for freshmen and sophomores will continue to be offered locally at Lone Star College-Montgomery University Center, where SHSU has offered classes since 1998, Eglsaer said.

He said the new facility was in response to the large enrollment numbers SHSU has experience at the University Center.

"Since the opening of the center, of the students going to [University Center], 70 percent were going to SHSU," Eglsaer said. "And since we've had such a lion's share for so long, it made sense for us to have our own building."

Not only were the vast majority of University Center students enrolled at SHSU, but also the main campus in Huntsville sees a significant amount of its students hail from areas north of FM 1960.

The Woodlands Center will offer 15 undergraduate degree programs, including accounting, arts and sciences, criminal justice, English, finance, business administration, history, political science, psychology and sociology.

Among the graduate programs are business administration, communication studies, criminal justice, English, history, political science, Spanish and sports management.

SHSU President Dana Gibson said the school's expansion into The Woodlands is designed to expand the school's graduate studies program, emphasize studies, such as the allied health program, most needed by The Woodlands community, and to improve completion rates for undergrads.

Gibson said the stronger focus on undergraduate studies is designed to retain students who enroll in classes, and then choose not to attend classes.

Graduate programs offered at SHSU - The Woodlands Center

• Applied Geographic Information Systems
• Business Administration
• Communication Studies
• Criminal Justice
• Curriculum Instruction
• Curriculum Instruction - Physical Education Certification
• Educational Leadership - Administrator Instructional Leadership and Principalship
• English
• Geographical Information Systems
• History
• Political Science
• Psychology
• Spanish
• Special Education: Educational Diagnostician Certification
• Sports Management