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New Texas A&M System Center Eyed for Downtown Fort Worth
Hub for collaboration with industry would rise alongside new law school building.

BRYAN-COLLEGE STATION, Texas — Fort Worth government and business leaders and Texas A&M University System officials are working together on plans to build a new downtown research campus to spur innovation and business development.

The shared vision is to create a hub for collaboration between key Fort Worth industries and top research, education and workforce training assets of the Texas A&M System. The shared goal is to spur business and job growth in one of the nation’s fastest growing cities and throughout North Texas.

The Texas A&M System Research and Innovation Center would be constructed alongside a new Education Alliance Building, which would host conferences and house professional, technical and university courses offered by the Texas A&M School of Law, Tarleton State University, Texas A&M University, the Texas A&M Health Science Center and other alliance members.

The innovation center and new education building would form the nucleus of a new urban campus along with a new, state-of-the art Law School at 1515 Commerce Street. The buildings would be constructed in phases beginning with the Research and Innovation Center. To download an artist’s renderings of the proposed buildings, please go to https://www.tamus.edu/ft-worth/

“The A&M System is making a Texas-sized commitment to Fort Worth,” Chancellor John Sharp said. “Welcome to Aggieland North.”

The System owns four blocks in the area and the City of Fort Worth has nearby property that could become available. The area is next to two major attractions, the Convention Center and Water Gardens. It is a short walk from two public transportation stations and close to two interstate highways, providing easy access to the Dallas-Fort Worth metropolitan area and surrounding region. The City is planning a convention center expansion, more hotel rooms and other nearby improvements.

A memorandum outlining the aspirations for the Texas A&M System’s Urban Campus in Fort Worth was signed last week by representatives of the A&M System, the city, Tarrant County and Fort Worth Now, a privately-funded group formed to help businesses and economic growth in aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Civic leaders are looking for help from a top research university to strengthen the area’s industrial and employment base. Results from the 2020 Census show Fort Worth has a population of nearly one million residents and is growing faster than any major U.S. city. However nearly half of the 1.2 million adults in Tarrant County (age 25 and older) lack a college degree. One in four county households has an annual income below $30,000.

The A&M Research and Innovation Center will house a wide range of initiatives involving the System’s network of state agencies. Discussions so far include programs in emergency response communication, medical technologies, advanced manufacturing, nutrition, biotechnology, medical laboratory science and nursing.

Six notable Fort Worth employers — Alcon, AT&T, Bell, Elbit Systems of America, Lockheed Martin, and Philips — are interested in collaborating in particular research areas. An incubator for business startups might relocate to the A&M center.

The System agencies involved would be Texas Division of Emergency Management, the Texas A&M Engineering Experiment Station, the Texas A&M Engineering Extension Service, Texas A&M AgriLife Research, and the Texas A&M Transportation Institute.

A new Law School would serve as the front door and academic anchor of the urban campus.

The current law school is housed in the former Southwestern Bell call switching facility that was converted for office use. The school also uses leased space in a nearby building. The plan envisions renovating or rebuilding the law school to accommodate growth and provide a state-of-the art educational environment.

Since the A&M System acquired the law school eight years ago, it has experienced the largest jump to its reputational score of any law school in the United States. It recently passed its Texas counterparts at Baylor University and the University of Houston in the latest U.S. News & World Report rankings.

Another partner would be Tarleton State University, a member of the A&M System that already has a Fort Worth campus along the Chisholm Trail Parkway and leased space downtown at Baylor All Saints Medical Center for nursing and other medical-related fields. Tarleton would move its health-related offerings to the new urban campus so students are close to their clinical assignments at nearby hospitals, clinics and labs.

The memorandum signed last week is a non-binding statement of the parties’ intentions. It allows discussions and planning to become more detailed in the coming months. Construction of the buildings would require a series of approvals from the Board of Regents, although the law building has been in the Board’s capital improvement plan for several years.

Key parts of the plans also will need approval from the Fort Worth City Council and Tarrant County Court of Commissioners.

About The Texas A&M University System
The Texas A&M University System is one of the largest systems of higher education in the nation, with a budget of $9.6 billion. Through a statewide network of 11 universities, a comprehensive health science center, eight state agencies, and the RELLIS Campus, the Texas A&M System educates more than 153,000 students and makes more than 22 million additional educational contacts through service and outreach programs each year. System-wide, research and development expenditures exceed $1 billion and help drive the state’s economy.

Contact: Laylan Copelin
Vice Chancellor of Marketing and Communications
(979) 458-6425
(512) 289-2782 cell
lcopelin@tamus.edu

Fort Worth, Tarrant County leaders celebrate Texas A&M announcement to expand in Downtown Fort Worth
Plans include hub for industry collaboration, new law school

FORT WORTH, Texas — Today, Fort Worth and Tarrant County government and business leaders and Texas A&M University System officials announced plans for Texas A&M System’s Urban Campus in Fort Worth, a new research campus to spur innovation and business development in downtown Fort Worth.

The vision for the Texas A&M System’s Urban Campus in Fort Worth includes a Texas A&M System Research and Innovation Center, Education Alliance Building and new, state-of-the art Law School. For more details on Texas A&M University’s announcement and artist’s renderings of the proposed buildings, visit https://www.tamus.edu/ft-worth/

“The A&M System is making a Texas-sized commitment to Fort Worth,” Texas A&M University System Chancellor John Sharp said. “Welcome to Aggieland North.”

As the leaders of the fastest growing large city in the nation and the 15^th largest county in the U.S., Fort Worth Mayor Mattie Parker and Tarrant County Judge Glen Whitley see the announcement as a win for both the city and the county.

Mayor Parker said the city’s efforts to capitalize on economic development opportunities and develop the workforce of tomorrow. Texas A&M’s plans also coincide with the City of Fort Worth’s intentions to expand and modernize the neighboring Fort Worth Convention Center, a project that is expected to begin in the next few years.

“Fort Worth is the ideal landing place for Texas A&M to expand its brand and anchor a hub for innovation. Our city is ready to be the home of these opportunities for life-changing workforce development and world-changing research,” said Mayor Parker, “I am proud to be working with these forward-thinking leaders whose creativity and pioneering spirit will lead Fort Worth into a future of reaching its full potential. It is truly go time in Fort Worth, and the role that this project will have in the revitalization of the Fort Worth convention center district to spur business and job growth is a prime example of that.”

Judge Whitley said the announcement of a downtown campus is a continuation of a long-standing relationship with Texas A&M.

“The significance of having a Tier 1 Research University located in the urban core of Tarrant County cannot be overstated,” said Tarrant County Judge Glen Whitley. “Tarrant County has enjoyed a great partnership with Texas A&M through the Law School, AgriLife Extension, and emergency management, and I am very excited about the University’s further commitment to downtown Fort Worth and Tarrant County. Together, Tarrant County and Texas A&M will lift each other to new heights.”

The announcement is the result of joint efforts between the Texas A&M University System, the City of Fort Worth, Tarrant County and Fort Worth Now. A memorandum outlining the aspirations for the Texas A&M System’s Urban Campus in Fort Worth was signed last week by representatives of each group.

“I think that it’s important that Texas A&M University have an urban presence and I am glad that they picked Fort Worth and Tarrant County for that urban presence,” said Tarrant County Precinct 1 Commissioner Roy Charles Brooks, “I look forward to working with the university to help integrate them into it into the fabric of Fort Worth in general and downtown Fort Worth in particular. I think their presence will help solidify downtown as an educational incubator. I’m especially interested in the synergies between Texas A&M, Tarrant County College and the Young Women’s Leadership Academy, all of which are located in downtown Fort Worth. I’m hopeful we’ll see a sharing of resources and facilities. Texas A&M plans to partner with businesses in developing a center for innovation to develop new jobs and new entities. It’s a good thing all around for Fort Worth and Tarrant County.”

Former Fort Worth Mayor Betsy Price’s Fort Worth Now initiative played a large role in the announcement coming to fruition. Fort Worth Now is a privately-funded economic recovery and growth strike force launched in May 2020 in an effort to lead Fort Worth’s post-COVID response to stabilize and restore local businesses, while strategically targeting growth opportunities to advance Fort Worth’s economy.

“This is a big deal, and I know we have a lot of proud local Aggies who are excited about this news. We are too. A&M has been a fantastic partner to the people of Fort Worth and Tarrant County. This latest announcement is just another example—and it’s a credit not only to the A&M leadership’s vision but to the Fort Worth Now initiative that we created to seize opportunities exactly like this. We’re grateful for A&M’s continued commitment to grow Aggie Nation right here in our community,” said former Mayor Price.

When former Mayor Price launched Fort Worth Now, she tapped business leaders John Goff and Elaine Agather to co-chair the initiative.

“When Mayor Price asked Elaine Agather and me to co-chair Fort Worth Now, we recognized the need not only to assist with the immediate impacts of the pandemic, but more importantly, to help build the Fort Worth economy of the future,” said Goff, “I have enjoyed working closely with Texas A&M and Chancellor Sharp for more than a year, to expand their presence here in Fort Worth. Today’s announcement will lead to an expansive urban campus, building on the success of the Law School in ways that will not only transform downtown but be a game changer for our city. It will help attract young talent, educate our work force, bring innovation to the city, and foster collaboration with many of our locally based companies on new technologies. Texas A&M is uniquely positioned to advance those goals, as not only a Tier-1 research institute, but with the multiple critical Texas state agencies that operate under its auspices.”

Press Contacts:
Bethany K. Warner, City of Fort Worth
bethany.warner@fortworthtexas.gov
Bill Hanna, Tarrant County
WBHanna@tarrantcounty.com

Extras

Envisioned at The Texas A&M System Urban Campus in Fort Worth

Executives applaud Texas A&M System Plans for Innovation Center

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Philips

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Philips

Philips
“Texas A&M and its Center for Global Health and Innovation has been a key partner for us as we develop technologies for monitoring infectious diseases,” said Dr. Joseph Frassica, Head of Philips Research and Chief Medical Officer for North America. “As we continue to innovate with the Department of Defense to support our troops and ensure force readiness, and apply those learnings to public health, the center will continue to be a trusted research partner.”

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Lockheed Martin
“Lockheed Martin is excited to welcome Texas A&M to the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex,” said Bridget Lauderdale, Vice President and General Manager of the F-35 Lightning II Program. “We look forward to partnering with Texas A&M faculty, staff and students to solve complex problems that impact the national security of the United States and our allies. The new Texas A&M System Research and Innovation Building will enable additional research and local workforce development in critical disciplines. It will further expand our partnership across the A&M System in areas including hypersonics, manufacturing, advanced networks and cyber. Gig ‘em!”

Elbit Systems of America
“Elbit America is excited that the Texas A&M System is establishing an Innovation and Research Center in Fort Worth,” said President & CEO Raanan Horowitz. “Having this center in our community will create greater opportunities for local industry and academia to intersect. I’m looking forward to partnering with Texas A&M, developing tomorrow’s technologies in artificial intelligence, machine learning, and advanced manufacturing to support our defense, medical, and first responder customers.”

AT&T
“Providing AT&T 5G to The Texas A&M University System creates opportunities to fuel 5G innovations that solve real-world problems,” said Jason Porter, President of AT&T Public Sector and FirstNet. “In June, we announced we are bringing a private AT&T 5G network to the RELLIS Campus and we’re excited to expand our collaboration to the Fort Worth campus.

“Texas A&M has research capabilities that can transform multiple industries, including public safety. We know the possibilities for 5G and public safety are extraordinary and AT&T has a long-standing commitment to serving the public safety community. In fact, our work with FirstNet with includes providing innovative, mission-ready tools for first responders. The Texas Division of Emergency Management Emergency Response and Research Center can create new 5G solutions and applications that will improve public safety outcomes and help when moments matter the most.”

Fort Worth Now
When former Fort Worth Mayor Betsy Price launched Fort Worth Now in May 2020, she asked area business leader John Goff to be a co-chairman of the initiative.

“Today’s announcement will lead to an expansive urban campus, building on the success of the Law School in ways that will not only transform downtown but be a game changer for our city,” said Goff, a private investor and 2020 inductee into the Texas Business Hall of Fame. “It will help attract young talent, educate our work force, bring innovation to the city, and foster collaboration with many of our locally based companies on new technologies. Texas A&M is uniquely positioned to advance those goals, as not only a Tier-1 research institute, but with the multiple critical Texas state agencies that operate under its auspices.”

Media Inquiries

Contact: Laylan Copelin

Vice Chancellor of Marketing and Communications
(979) 458-6425
(512) 289-2782 cell
lcopelin@tamus.edu