HUSTON-TILLOTSON UNIVERSITY Austin www.htc.edu

History: Huston-Tillotson University is Austin's oldest institution of higher education. Tillotson College, a Congregationalist institution founded in 1875, and Samuel Huston College, a Methodist institution founded in 1876, merged in 1952 to form Huston-Tillotson College. In 2005, the school officially changed its name to Huston-Tillotson University. In keeping with its heritage, Huston-Tillotson relates to both the United Methodist Church and the United Church of Christ.

Degrees and programs: Bachelor's degrees. Division of Liberal Arts and Division of Professional Services and Division of Science and Technology. Largest programs: Business Administration and Administrative Services, Social Sciences and History, Computer and Information Sciences, Education, and Psychology.

Mission: To provide its increasingly diverse student body with an exemplary education that is grounded in the liberal arts and sciences, balanced with professional development, and dedicated to public service and leadership.

LON MORRIS COLLEGE Jacksonville www.lonmorris.edu

History: Founded in 1854 as the New Danville Masonic Female Academy near Kilgore, Lon Morris is the oldest junior college in Texas. In 1873, the college moved to Kilgore and became the property of Kilgore Methodist Church, changing its name to Alexander Institute in honor of its president. The Texas Annual Conference acquired the institute in 1875. Chartered in 1887, it moved to Jacksonville in 1894 and to the present location in 1909. The name was changed once more after R.A. (Lon) Morris endowed the school.

Degrees and programs: Associate degrees. Divisions of Fine Arts, Humanities, and Sciences.

Mission: To offer a quality liberal arts education within a Christian community that allows the whole person to develop and mature.

McMURRY UNIVERSITY Abilene www.mcm.edu

History: McMurry College was founded in 1923 by the Northwest Texas and New Mexico Conferences and was named for the bishop who supported its founding. McMurry is the legal and spiritual successor to three Texas and New Mexico institutions: Stamford College, Clarendon College, and Seth Ward College. In 1947, the college merged with the Dallas Institute of Vocal and Dramatic Art. McMurry was made a university in 1990.

Degrees and programs: Bachelor's degrees. College of Arts and Sciences, School of Education, School of Business and School of Nursing.

Mission: To provide a Christian liberal and professional education that prepares students for a fulfilling life of leadership and service.

SOUTHERN METHODIST UNIVERSITY Dallas www.smu.edu

History: The Methodist Church founded SMU in 1911. At that time, Dallas citizens pledged $300,000 to secure the university. In appreciation, SMU named its first building Dallas Hall, and this building remains SMU's symbol and centerpiece.

Degrees and programs: Bachelor's, Master's, and Doctor's degrees. Schools of Business, Humanities and Science, Arts, Engineering, Law, and Theology; and the Division of Education.

Mission: To be a leading private institution of higher learning that expands knowledge through research and teaching. The university is dedicated to the values of academic freedom and open inquiry and to its United Methodist heritage.

SOUTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY Georgetown www.southwestern.edu

History: [Southwestern's] founding lies in the histories of four 'root' institutions established earlier. Its February 7, 1875, Union Charter says that the right to confer degrees, regular and honorary, in the arts and sciences, heretofore conveyed through the Legislature of the State of Texas in the charters of Rutersville College (1840) . . . Wesleyan College (1844) . . . Soule University (1856) . . . and McKenzie College (1848) . . . are hereby transferred and perpetuated and retained to said Curators; and the graduates of said colleges and university shall be entitled to all the literary privileges and honors inuring to other graduates of Southwestern University.

Degrees and programs: Bachelor's degrees. Schools of Fine Arts, Liberal Arts, and Sciences; pre-professional programs in Engineering, Medicine, Law, Business, Education, and Theology.

Core purpose: Fostering a liberal arts community whose values and actions encourage contributions to the well-being of humanity.

TEXAS WESLEYAN UNIVERSITY Fort Worth www.txwes.edu

History: Beginning as Polytechnic College in 1890, the institution became Texas Woman's College in 1914, and became coeducational again in 1935 under the name of Texas Wesleyan College. The name was changed to Texas Wesleyan University in 1989.

Degrees and programs: Bachelor's, Master's, and JD degrees. Schools of Business, Education, Arts and Sciences, and Law.

Mission: To develop students to their full potenial as individuals and as members of the world community.

WILEY COLLEGE Marshall www.wileyc.edu

History: Wiley College was founded in 1873 by the Methodist Episcopal Church under the leadership of Bishop Isaac Wiley, and by the Freedman's Aid Society, for the purpose of preparing the newly-emancipated people for the future. Wiley is the oldest accredited historically Black college west of the Mississippi River.

Degrees and programs: Associate and Bachelor's degrees in 17 disciplines in Arts and Sciences, Business and Technology, Education, and Professional Studies.

Mission: [To provide] a challenging curriculum, administered in an atmosphere of academic freedom with its corollary obligations, that prepares graduates for . . . professional or graduate studies and viable careers . . . [and to encourage and support] spiritual, ethical, and moral develpment, an appreciation for the arts, global awareness, and concern for the common good. . . .