Lamar State College in Orange (LSCO) turned fifty this month. For five decades the community college has grown from an enrollment of 345 students to currently approximately 2,300 students taking courses at multiply buildings on the downtown campus.
In the beginning there was Dr. Joe Ben Welch (center) who served as the first president of Lamar in Orange. There were no plans to get the local college started so Welch admits he took some liberties to get it altogether.
The first hurdles to clear were money, money, and some more money according to Welch. There were three or four sources of funding for the college, and Welch credits the citizens of the community for pitching in and making the school feel at home to let it grow.
The big break came when the state legislature realized in 1971 that Lamar was in Orange and growing. Austin appropriated $125,000 to fund the college, and that’s when it took off. “We said to each other, we’re here to stay,” Welch remembered.
The campus started out in a building described as a barn by Welch on the old navy base in Orange. The school was known as Tilley Tech since the building had previously served as Tilley Elementary on the base.
The structure burned in 1971. After the fire the campus eventually moved into downtown Orange. Community leaders raised funds for the purchase of a new facility that could accommodate students. The fund-raising campaign produced $250,000 that allowed for the purchase of a building located on Front Street.
Classes were held in the building that previously housed a bowling alley. Later the old Western Auto store was purchased and a new Student Center was built on that site.
Welch served as director, dean, provost, as well as president during his nineteen-year tenure at Lamar in Orange. The initial class offerings focused on academic courses that would transfer and count toward a baccalaureate degree. Welch, however, saw the need to offer career-oriented programs that would prepare students for immediate entry into the workforce.
During Welch’s tenure he began to add programs such as vocational nursing and welding. This mix of academic and career-oriented programs defines the campus mission today. The campus attracted more students and enrollment grew to over 800 students by 1979.
Following Welch’s departure, the Lamar University System Board of Regents named Steve Maradian as president. He served until 1994 and was successful in bringing external grant funding to the campus. In 1994, the Board selected Dr. J. Michael Shahan to succeed Maradian. Shahan saw the campus have its largest growth during his 24 years as president. He retired in September 2018. He was replaced by Dr. Tom Johnson.
The future is hard to predict, but Welch believes LSCO will continue to grow bigger and better. The key he said is staying on the good side of the Texas Legislature to make it work for the long run.
Dr. Welch looks at the growth of the campus since when he was president. “Wonderful, wonderful, we started out in a barn out there on the base now look at this,” Welch concluded speaking in the new Shahan Event Center.
-Dan Perrine, KOGT-
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