2.6 Continuous Operation

The institution is in operation and has students enrolled in degree programs.

Judgment of Compliance

Compliance

Narrative of Compliance

Prairie View A&M University, the first co-educational and the second oldest public institution of higher education in Texas, originated in the Texas Constitution of 1876 [1] [2] and has been in continuous operation since that time. The original curriculum was expanded in 1879 to include the arts and sciences, home economics, agriculture, mechanical arts and nursing after the University was established as a branch of the Agricultural Experiment Station [3] and then as a Land Grant College in 1890 [4]. This began the tradition of agricultural research and community service that continues today. The four-year senior college program began in 1919 and, in 1937, a division of graduate studies was added, offering Master’s degrees in agricultural economics, rural education, agricultural education, school administration and supervision, and rural sociology [5] [6]. In 1945, the name of the institution was changed from Prairie View Normal and Industrial College to Prairie View University, and the school was authorized to offer, “as need arises,” all courses offered at the University of Texas. In October 2000, the Governor of Texas signed the Priority Plan, an agreement with the U.S. Department of Education Office of Civil Rights to make Prairie View A&M University an educational asset accessible by all Texans [7]. Graduate studies were expanded to include multiple new offerings starting in 2001 with the Ph.D. in Juvenile Justice [8] and continuing with programs at both the Masters and Doctoral levels in Business, Education, Nursing, Engineering, and Juvenile Justice and Psychology [9].

The University’s enrollment for the past nine years, as certified by the Office of Academic Affairs and the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board and published in the University's Fact Books [10] [11] [12], is listed in the table below:

Students are enrolled across 95 degree programs (50 Bachelor, 41 Masters and 4 Doctoral) [13]. The programs span the Graduate School, the Undergraduate Medical Academy, University College and eight undergraduate academic colleges: The College of Agriculture and Human Sciences, the School of Architecture, the College of Arts and Sciences, the College of Business, the College of Education, the College of Engineering, the College of Nursing, and the College of Juvenile Justice and Psychology.

Supporting Documentation and Links

• [1] 8 Gammel’s Laws of Texas Establishing the University
  PDF Document, 2 Pages
• [2] Texas A&M University System Policy 02.04.02 Prairie View A&M University Legal Basis and Administrative Structure
  PDF document, 2 Pages
• [3] Hatch Act of 1877
  PDF document, 8 Pages
• [4] Second Morrill Act of 1890
  PDF document, 3 Pages
• [5] The First Seventy-Five Years, 1876-51, Prairie View Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas
  PDF document, 16 Pages
• [6] A Brief Chronology of Prairie View A&M University, PVAMU Factbook 2002-2006
  PDF document, 2 Pages
• [7] Texas Commitment OCR Priority Plan
  PDF Document, 38 Pages
• [8] Texas A&M University System Board of Regents Minute Order 22-2000
  PDF Document, 1 Page | Full Text Version
• [9] Five Year Review, 2003-2008, Page 23
  PDF document, 1 Page | Full Text Version
• [10] Enrollment Numbers, University Fact Book, 1999-2003
  PDF document, 1 Page | Full Text Version
• [11] Enrollment Numbers, University Fact Book, 2002-2006
  PDF document, 1 Page | Full Text Version
• [12] Enrollment Numbers, University Fact Book, 2007-2008
  PDF Document, 1 Page
• [13] Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board Approved Academic Programs
  PDF document, 3 Pages