Texas Lutheran University

100th anniversary sign of TLU in Seguin, unveiled 2011

Texas Lutheran University historical marker in Brenham

The university traces its roots back to 1891, to an academy of the first German Evangelical Lutheran Synod in Texas,[2] in Brenham. Its first president was the Reverend Gottlieb Langner.[3] That school accumulated crushing financial problems, but in 1912, it was rescued by an offer of 15 acres and $20,000 from local businessmen to relocate the academy to Seguin.[2] Initially, the Lutheran College of Seguin, Texas, as it was newly named, had only one building on a bare former cotton field, with 46 students.

The academy reached junior college status in 1928 with accreditation from the Texas Department of Education. The Swedish Lutheran Trinity College of Round Rock was having trouble maintaining a minimum 40 freshmen and 20 sophomores, so in 1929, it pooled its resources with the larger Seguin institution, bringing two professors and support from Swedish Lutherans. The combined school was renamed Texas Lutheran College in 1930. It became a four-year institution in 1948. Then, Texas Lutheran absorbed Clifton College of Clifton, a Norwegian Lutheran school in 1954, again gaining faculty and support from a larger base.[2]

When the college received recognition in 1953 as a fully accredited senior college by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, faculty and students rang the "Victory Bell" in celebration for hours. After 40 years of growth, the institution was once again renamed, taking its present title of Texas Lutheran University in 1996.[4] Over the 100 years since moving to Seguin, TLU's span has increased to over 40 buildings and sports fields on 184 acres with about 1,400 students each semester.

Student body Texas Lutheran University currently has an enrollment of about 1400 students with 48% male and 52% female. Students come from 23 states and eight foreign countries. About 65% of full-time students live on campus, and 96% receive some financial assistance. TLU has 19% Lutheran students, 27% Hispanic, and 10% African-American students.

Rankings and accreditation Texas Lutheran University is ranked number three by the U.S. News & World Report 2013 Best West Regional Universities, and is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges and also accredited by ACBSP, CAATE, and TEAC.

Entrance sign to Texas Lutheran University

The campus lies just off Interstate 10 on State Highway 46, between US Highway 90 and Alt US 90. The address is 1000 West Court St., which is also Alt. U.S. 90, and Seguin's main east-west street.

The campus occupies more than 40 buildings and athletic fields covering 184 acres, as well as a biology field station at neighboring Lake McQueeney. Located in the heart of the campus is the Chapel of the Abiding Presence. There are several residence halls, as well as on-campus apartments and family housing for students who are married or have children. Student and alumni art can be found throughout campus, and sections of the sidewalk are designed for bricks dedicated to Texas Lutheran University affiliates. Oaks and other trees shade the campus, and rows of flowering crape myrtles provide color.

Chapel of the Abiding Presence

The Chapel of the Abiding Presence

The Chapel of the Abiding Presence (locally known as the Weinert Chapel after the principal donors) is located in the heart of the campus. The Gothic Revival building of Austin limestone was designed by ecclesiastical architect Henry Steinbomer[5] of San Antonio in 1954. The Chapel is listed in the Historic Campus Architecture Project of the Council of Independent Colleges.[6] After a fire in 1969, architect Ed Sovik from St. Olaf College[7] in Minnesota supervised the rebuilding with a nontraditional interior.

Today, the sanctuary can seat 400, and hosts a tracker-action Schlicker organ. The chapel is used by campus organizations to hold various activities and services, as well as weddings of students and alumni.

Chapel services that last 20 minutes are open to the public. They are held Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at 10 am during the academic year.

Other notable buildings

Langner Memorial Hall, named for the first president of TLU, houses English, history, and psychology instruction.

Also facing the quadrangle on the southwest corner is the Emma Frey Hall, a former women's dormitory in Spanish Colonial Revival style by noted architect Marvin Eichenroht in 1929. The building is the oldest on the campus and has been remodeled to serve as offices for computer science and mathematics faculty offices, as well as the honors programs.

On the east side is Langner Hall, named for the first president of TLU, and built to plans by Atlee B. Ayers in 1947. Today, it houses classrooms and faculty offices for the social science and humanities departments, as well as the Mexican American Studies Center, and the Fiedler Memorial Museum and outdoor geological garden.

Blumberg Library

The Blumberg Memorial Library at TLU opened in 1970.

The Blumberg Library, which opened in 1970, is next to the Alumni Student Center. It includes over 262,000 items of library materials and subscribes to over 700 journal titles. It is a member of the Online Computer Library Center system and also provides an online public access catalog, which gives students access to databases in each academic discipline.

Hein Dining Hall

Weimar and Paula Hein Dining Center

Hein Dining Hall, with cafeteria-style service and food stations, is the main dining hall. The Centennial Commons seats 350 and is the general dining area for students. Other smaller dining rooms are the Timmerman Room, Suehs Room, and Katie Conference Center, which are often used by campus and community groups for meetings.

Jackson Auditorium

Jackson Auditorium seats 1,050 for concerts and other events.

Jackson Auditorium seats 1,050 and many of the special events at TLU, like the Krost Symposium or concerts, happen here. It is also used by the Mid-Texas Symphony and other community and church organizations.

Classrooms and other buildings

Tschoepe Hall, a classroom building

Schuech Fine Arts Center

Other campus buildings include O. G. Beck College Center, Moody Science Building, Tschoepe Hall, Health Center, Krost Center, Lutheran Ministry Center, Moline Center for Student Leadership, and the newest, Centennial Hall—named in celebration of 100 years in Seguin—with ground floor classrooms and housing above.

Schuech Fine Arts Center is a multipurpose facility with a 200-seat theater, recital hall, band hall, music studios, art labs, and a gallery.

The Jesse H. Jones Physical Education Complex, named for the former United States Secretary of Commerce Jesse H. Jones, has a 2,200-seat gym for intercollegiate basketball and volleyball games, offices for faculty and coaches, locker rooms, racquetball courts, and an eight-lane collegiate-size swimming pool, as well as the Grossman Fitness Center, the Kieffer Kinesiology Laboratory, and Rinn Field House.

The O.G. Beck College Center is the administrative headquarters of the university.

The campus has intramural sports fields, the Gustafson Soccer Field, the Katt-Isbel Baseball Field, the Morck Softball Field, a putting green/driving range for the golf team, tennis courts, sandlot volleyball courts, a police department, and a maintenance complex.

A major expansion of intercollegiate sports was part of its 2013 Homecoming, when TLU officials broke ground for a football and track and field stadium, as well as a new and lighted softball field, lights for the baseball field (to allow night games), and a concession stand with toilets.[8] The Bulldog teams began playing in the new facilities in 2014.

The Greek life opportunities for students include sororities and fraternities. The sororities include: Beta Alpha Sigma, Xi Tau, Kappa Pi Gamma, Delta Alpha Delta, and Sigma Delta Lambda. Fraternities include Sigma Phi Theta, Zeta Chi, and Omega Tau. [9]

Student organizations are offered in many areas on campus. Some are based on department, such as Athletic Training Club and Geography Club; Honorary Greek Organizations, such as Alpha Chi National Honors Society and Psi Chi Psychology Honors Society; Professional Organizations such as Alpha Kappa Psi National Business Fraternity and Student Education Association for Student Teachers; Band Service Fraternity and Sorority Kappa Kappa Psi, and Tau Beta Sigma; Campus Ministry and Religious Organizations such as Catholic Student Organization and Fellowship of Christian Athletes; Campus Organizations such as the Cheerleaders and the Student Government Association; Service and Social Organizations such as the Black Student Union and Mexican American Student Association; Theater Organizations such as Alpha Psi Omega, the theater honor society; Musical Organizations such as the variety of TLU choirs and TLU bands; Student Publications such as the Lone Star Lutheran Magazine and the Sidewalk; and others.

Almost one third of full-time TLU students take part in one of the intercollegiate sports.

The Athletics Department includes baseball, softball, men's and women's basketball, men's and women's soccer, men's and women's golf, men's and women's tennis, volleyball, women's cross country, women's track & field, and recently football. All sports teams compete at the NCAA Division III level under the team name, the Bulldogs.

Starting July 1, 2013, Texas Lutheran University switched to a new conference, competing in the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference, in all sports except football. SCAC does not have enough member schools with football teams. Meanwhile, the football team is an independent.[10]

The schools in SCAC are similar to TLU. Student athletes receive no athletic scholarships. The others are Austin College in Sherman, Centenary College in Shreveport, Colorado College in Colorado Springs, University of Dallas in Irving, Schreiner University in Kerrville, Southwestern University in Georgetown, and Trinity University in San Antonio.

Baseball Greg Burnett is the head baseball coach.

Softball Wade Wilson is the head coach of the softball team. They were the 2014 SCAC regular-season and tournament champions.

Men's basketball Mike Wacker is the head coach for the Bulldogs.

Women's basketball Mel Dixon is head coach for the women's basketball team.

Men's soccer Eddie Salazar is head coach of the men's soccer team.

Women's soccer Coach Larry Schaffer took over the women's soccer program in 2012.

Men's and women's golf H.C. Tran is the head coach for both the men's and women's golf teams. They practice on the courses at Max Starcke Park, Chaparral Golf Club (both in Seguin), and The Bandit at Long Creek (in nearby McQueeney) for daily on-course practice. Players compete in many tournaments, often traveling out of state.

Volleyball Tiffany Davis is the head coach of the volleyball team.

Men's and women's tennis Michael Hunt is the head coach for both the men and the women. Both teams play home matches.

Women's cross country and frack & field Darlene Holland is the head coach for cross country and track. Track and field won the conference championship four times.

Football The head coach of TLU's is Ricky Matt

Cheerleaders and dance team The TLU cheerleaders and mascot (Lucky) are part of the TLU Athletics Department. The squad participates at home football and basketball games, as well as a few away games. The Gold Star Dance Team performs at halftime of every home football and basketball game.

In preparation for the Christmas holidays, the TLU choirs collaborate with the TLU band to host the annual Christmas Vespers services. This celebration of music and word honors the integral role music has played and is playing in Texas Lutheran curriculum and cultural history. The service is usually held four days in Seguin and one or two days in Austin to allow the campus and Seguin communities, as well as TLU families and the Austin community, the opportunity to attend the service.[11]

Texas Lutheran University invites speakers, performers and musicians to campus.

Past cultural events presented by TLU include Chanticleer, The Vienna Choir Boys, The Joffrey Ballet, The Guthrie Theatre, The Dixie Chicks, The Chinese Golden Dragon Acrobats, Canadian Brass, Bach Society Houston, U.S. Navy Band Country Current and The Second City Touring Company.

Past speakers include Arun Gandhi, Bob Dole, Morris Dees, Barbara Ehrenreich, Harry Benson, Paul Roberts, John Besh, David Gergen, Aron Ralston, Michele Norris and Judy Shepard.

Every year, Texas Lutheran hosts a symposium focusing on a particular new topic. This multi-day Krost Symposium event brings in guest speakers with a range of viewpoints and experience on the chosen topic. The first Krost Symposium was held in 1981 and the program has continued annually without interruption ever since. Events are free and open to the public.

• Laurie Corbelli was a member of the TLU team that won the 1975 & 1976 AIAW Division II National Championship. She was a Silver Medalist with the 1984 U.S. Olympic Volleyball Team, and now is head coach of the Texas A&M Aggies women's volleyball team
• Lee Eun-chul was a student from South Korea, who competed at five Olympic Games, 1984 to 2000. He was Olympic Gold Medal winner in 50 meter rifle prone event at the 1992 Games in Barcelona.
• Cameron Beckman graduated from TLU in 1993 and became a PGA Tour golfer. He earned his third PGA Tour title at the 2010 Mayakoba Golf Classic.
• Alton Chung Ming Chan is a Grammy Award nominated concert pianist. He earned his undergraduate degree at TLU, and his Masters and PhD. at the University of North Texas College of Music.
• Edmund Kuempel received a Bachelor of Business Administration from TLU. He was a Republican member of the Texas House of Representatives from Guadalupe County for some twenty-seven years until his death in 2010.
• Steven Long attended Alvin Community College, Texas Lutheran College (now TLU), and Sam Houston State University. From 1977 until 1988, Long owned and published the In Between, a weekly newspaper in Galveston. After closing the In Between, Long worked for the Houston Chronicle for six years and was later assigned by the New York Post to cover high-profile cases, such as the case of Andrea Yates, and the fall of Enron.
• Verne Lundquist graduated from Texas Lutheran College (now TLU) in 1962. Lundquist, called "the Golden Voice, is currently a play-by-play sportscaster by CBS Television Sports, covering college football and baseball, as well as major golfing events. In 2007 he was inducted into the Hall of Fame of the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association.
• Don Mischer is a producer and director of television and live events. He attended TLU and graduated from the University of Texas at Austin in 1961. He has won fifteen Emmy Awards, ten Directors Guild of America Awards for Outstanding Directorial Achievement, two NAACP Image Awards, a Peabody Award for excellence in broadcasting, and the 2012 Norman Lear Achievement Award in Television from the Producers Guild of America.
• Faton Bislimi graduated from TLU with a B.S. in computer science and a B.A. in math. Bislimi wrote for the Albanian daily Bota Sot, and worked with the Albanian-American Civic League. He wrote two books, a compilation of math problems and a series of journalistic writings titled Në Rrugëtim me Kosovën: Tatëpjetat dhe të Përpjetat. He founded The Bislimi Group in an effort to offer better education opportunities to Kosovar students, and 13 full scholarships have been awarded through The Bislimi Group.
• Chris Elley graduated from TLU with a B.A. in Communication Studies, and earned a Master's in Mass Communications from Texas State University. Elley is the founder and current Director of Austin, Texas-based film production company Electro-Fish Media Inc. He holds two Emmy Awards and two additional nominations.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Texas Lutheran University.

• Official website
• Texas Lutheran Athletics website
• Texas Lutheran University at College Navigator, a tool from the National Center for Education Statistics