Texas State hosted its third annual State of Texas State speech, highlighting the university’s milestones over the year and its goals going forward on Jan. 23.
For the first time, the speech was open to the Texas State community, unlike past years when it was only open to faculty and staff. Within the LBJ Student Center, the ceremony opened with the student choir VocaLibre, followed by a speech from Texas State President Kelly Damphousse and a live recording of Damphousse’s podcast The Current.
Texas State reached record enrollment numbers for the fall 2025 semester with a total enrollment of 44,630 students, comprised of a record-breaking freshman class of 9,329 students, 5,215 graduate students, 3,968 online students and 2,083 international students. Texas State also added a 10th doctoral program and is expected to reach R1 status by the end of 2027.
“New growth is great, but we also have to be very practical and intentional in how we do that growth,” Damphousse said. “We don’t want to overwhelm the city of San Marcos; we recognize that growth can happen in Texas State without it all happening right here.”
Hays County is the second-fastest-growing large county in the nation with a 16.4% population surge from 2020 to 2023 due to it’s location on the I-35 corridor and Texas State, according to Opportunity Austin.
“And we’re right in the middle of that growth and that size,” Damphousse said. “With that growth comes tremendous opportunity, which brings profound responsibilities as well. A responsibility has served the higher education needs of this region, and compare a workforce ready, well-rounded graduate school will contribute as citizens and leaders across Texas.”
With 90% of the student population coming from Texas, Damphousse said the university is helping locals receive degrees. The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board wants 60% of Texans between the ages of 25 and 64 to receive a degree or certificate by 2030.
Damphousse said most of Texas State’s growth has been through online, Round Rock and community college programs, while the San Marcos campus has been steadily increasing. Damphousse said that with 14 online courses and 75 degree plans planned for fall 2026, more online growth is a goal for the university.
“There are people who are time and place-bound that can’t leave where they are because they’ve got a job, they’ve got a family, but they want to get an undergraduate degree,” Damphousse said.
Damphousse expects Texas State to set a new record-breaking spring 2026 enrollment of almost 42,000 students, which is up 11% in overall enrollment. However, the university will break enrollment records within: overall headcount, new doctoral students, total master’s students, total undergraduate students, semester credit hours, total international students , new master’s programs and the Round Rock campus.
“You can see an increase in the quality of students that they started admitting. The category of applications that’s increased the most is the top 10% and top 25% of high school seniors are the ones to come here.”
Phase one of the audit had to be completed by Jan. 20, with 685 courses being reviewed for “value-neutrality” within the course curriculum, previously reported by The Star.
According to the presentation, Texas State has a 80.1% first year retention rate with a 40% four-year graduation rate.
The university is set to reach 50,000 students enrolled at Texas State by next year, with a growth of 7,500 students in the next two years.
Looking forward, the university is expecting to improve the campus experience with 23 green space projects, 22 major renovations, 30 major construction projects and the new hotel breaking ground in summer 2026.
