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Former names | Lone Star College System North Harris Montgomery Community College District North Harris County College |
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Type | Public community college system |
Established | 1972 |
Chancellor | Mario K. Castillo [1] |
Students | 95,000+ |
Location | , , United States |
Colours | Red and Blue |
Nickname | LSCS |
Website | www |
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Lone Star College System (LSCS) is a public community college system serving the northern portions of the Greater Houston, Texas, area. As of fall 2025, it enrolls over 95,000 students. [2] The headquarters of the Lone Star College System are located in The Woodlands and in unincorporated Montgomery County, Texas.
The voters of the Aldine, Spring, and Humble school districts created North Harris County College in 1972 and opened the college for classes in 1973.
The district expanded in 1991 to cover neighboring Montgomery County and adopted the new name of North Harris Montgomery Community College District.
As the district expanded to include areas outside north Harris and Montgomery Counties, the Board of Trustees decided the District's current name did not adequately define the service area, plus it was hard to remember and was quite lengthy. During the first semester of the 2007 - 2008 school year, trustees initiated a name-change process using an online voting system; [3] among the options was the name Lone Star College System which was offered as 1) two of the colleges (Lone Star College–North Harris and Lone Star College–Montgomery) already included the name and 2) the 75th Texas Legislature adopted HR1123, recognizing Montgomery County as the birthplace of the Flag of Texas, known for its lone star which serves as the state motto. [4]
The name Lone Star College System was selected by those voting, and on November 1, 2007, the Board of Trustees officially approved Lone Star College System as the District's new name. The Lone Star College logo, known as "The Star of Tomorrow," was designed by Houston advertising agency Richards/Carlberg. [5] [6]
On January 22, 2013, the north Harris County campus was put on lockdown for a shooting where at least three people were shot. All were taken to a local hospital with gunshot wounds. The shooting occurred outside the library and learning lab. A Harris County deputy sheriff said, "We found that the incident was not an active shooter incident, but was an altercation between two individuals." [10] [11]
Three months later, on April 9, 2013, the Cy-Fair campus and seven other schools in the area were put on lockdown when a student named Dylan Quick started stabbing outside the science lab and soon went through other buildings. Authorities were notified of the incident at 11:12 a.m., but the campus wasn't notified until just a minute after. As authorities arrived, Quick had already been chased down and subdued in the parking lot by four fellow students and was soon taken away. A total of sixteen people were injured, two of them critically and four of them seriously; all survived. Quick was charged with one count of attempted murder and two charges of aggravated assault. In December 2015, he was sentenced to 48 years in prison for the attack. He is eligible for parole in 2039. [12]
The Lone Star College System Board of Trustees is responsible for ensuring that the Lone Star College System is an integral part of their communities and serves their needs. The board members do not do the work of the college; rather it establishes a vision for the work through the policies it sets.
All board members represent the college system as residents within the LSCS District and serve without remuneration or emolument of office except where benefits are provided by state law. Board members are elected as representatives of nine single-member districts by citizens in the Lone Star College System in-district service area in November of even-numbered years and serve terms of six years each. [13]
In fall 2020, LSCS began offering some four-year programs in Bachelor of Applied Technology in Cybersecurity, Bachelor of Science, Nursing (RN to BSN transition program), and Bachelor of Applied Science in Energy, Manufacturing, & Trades Management degrees after approval from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges. [14]
Lone Star College System is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges to award associate and baccalaureate degrees. [15]
Program-specific accreditations include:
As defined by the Texas Legislature, the service area of LSCS includes territory within the following school districts: [23]
(*) The district is included in the service area by state law but is not part of the tax base.
Lone Star College–CyFair in unincorporated Harris County was opened in May 2002. It has two centers. The library is a joint project between LSC and the Harris County Public Library.
Campus centers:
Lone Star College–Houston North was opened in 2019 and is located in three existing satellite locations and one in the surrounding Beltway 8 region of the Lone Star College service area. [26]
Satellite locations:
Lone Star College–Kingwood in Houston was opened in 1984 and is located at U.S. Highway 59 and Kingwood Drive in the northeast sector of Lone Star College's territory. LSC-Kingwood additionally has three off-site centers:
Lone Star College–Montgomery in unincorporated Montgomery County was opened in 1992. It is located between the Woodlands and Conroe areas. Campus centers:
Lone Star College–North Harris in unincorporated Harris County was opened in 1973. It also has three centers serving residents of the Aldine and Spring school districts.
Lone Star College-Online was added in 2022. [38]
Lone Star College–Tomball (Tomball): LSC-Tomball college, opened in 1988, additionally has two centers. The Lone Star College-Tomball Community Library is a joint project between LSCS and the Harris County Public Library.
Lone Star College-University Park in unincorporated Harris County was opened in December 2012. It is located at the site of the former Compaq World Headquarters/HP United States campus in northwest Houston.
University partner programs and locations:
There are two locations for the Lone Star College system offices. The first location is at The Woodlands [44] The district moved to its current location on March 17, 2003. [45] The second location is at Lone Star College-University Park, Building 11. The administrative headquarters of the district were previously located in the Greenspoint district and in Houston in a building now known as Lone Star College-Houston North Greenspoint. [46] [47]