Texas State Technical College officials joined state legislators and local officials June 25 to break ground on the new TSTC Fort Bend County campus in Rosenberg. The groundbreaking marks the construction of the first of six to eight buildings on the 80-acre campus, located north of Hwy. 59 between FM 2218 and Hwy. 36. Construction of the first 110,000-square-foot building is expected to be complete and ready for classes August 2016. “Although we have been in Fort Bend County teaching technical education for 15 years, this feels like a new beginning,” said Randy Wooten, TSTC Vice Chancellor and Executive-in-Charge for Fort Bend County. “[It is] new because the opportunity is great to grow and to significantly contribute to the economic development of Fort Bend County.” The new facility will house various technical programs, including cyber security, industrial maintenance technology, telecommunications convergence technology and welding technology. Once complete, projections estimate the campus will serve more than 5,000 students, Wooten said. The campus is projected to total more than $40 million, and the project will be funded by money raised by local organizations, the cities of Sugar Land, Richmond and Rosenberg and Fort Bend County. During the groundbreaking ceremony, the Rosenberg Development Corporation donated $2.5 million, followed by a $1 million donation from the Development Corporation of Richmond, to the Texas State Technical College Foundation. Fort Bend County Judge Robert Hebert said the new TSTC campus will address the needs of the growing workforce in Richmond and Rosenberg and will help stimulate the local economy. “We have lacked the depth, volume and variety of programs that a dedicated campus can offer for those who want higher education of a non-academic standard,” Hebert said. “With this groundbreaking today, we take a major step to being able to offer our youth training and high level workforce skills.”

State legislation

The 84th Texas Legislature approved two bills leading to the creation and future funding of the new Rosenberg campus. House Bill 658, signed by Gov. Greg Abbott May 23, establishes the new campus and was co-authored by state representatives John Zerwas, R-Richmond; Ron Reynolds, D-Missouri City; Rick Miller, R-Sugar Land; and Phil Stephenson, R-Wharton. State Sen. Lois Kolkhorst, R-Brenham, sponsored the bill. “HB 658 was the legislative vehicle for us to create what I think is going to be a groundbreaking event for many, many years to come for [Fort Bend County], for surrounding counties and ultimately the state of Texas,” Zerwas said. “This [bill] is such a clear testimony to the need out there.” HB 100, signed by Abbott June 18, dedicates $14.9 million to the construction of a second building on the Rosenberg campus. The bill became the first tuition revenue bond to pass since 2006. View a virtual tour of the new campus: Video courtesy Texas State Technical College