Texas Tech welcomes new Horn Professors, TTUHSC School of Medicine to see tuition increase

Mateo Rosiles, Lubbock Avalanche-Journal
·3 min read

WICHITA FALLS — There was a sense of somberness as the Texas Tech University System Board of Regents gathered this week at the Midwestern State University campus.

Before discussing any agenda items, Chairman Mark Griffin of Lubbock asked for a moment of silence for those impacted by the Smokehouse Creek Fires and others in the Panhandle during the week.

"We talk about the value and integrity of the Tech family, and there are members of the Tech family who are suffering today and who are devastated today," Griffin said. "I would like to take a moment of quiet reflection, supplication to offer up a blessing for peace, and for comfort and for clarity."

As this was a regularly scheduled board meeting, several items were up for consideration for all five component institutions of the system. One of the primary focuses of this meeting was on academics, with several items being approved for Texas Tech and the TTU Health Sciences Center.

Texas Tech academic prowess continues to grow

The regents approved 76 faculty members to be promoted to various professorship ranks, with 33 of the 76 receiving tenure at the university. Five additional faculty members were also granted tenure faculty, which, according to the meeting's agenda book, brings the total number of tenured full-time faculty members to 801.

Additionally, tenured faculty represent 42.4% of all full- and part-time faculty on campus.

The board also approved Fred Davis, chair of Information Technology in the Rawls College of Business, and Costica Bradatan, professor of humanities in the Honors College, to receive the highest professor designation Texas Tech has to offer — a Paul Whitfield Horn Distinguished Professor.

Davis and Bradatan join only 93 other professors who have received the distinguished professorship since it was established in 1966. Currently, 22 of the 93 are actively on faculty at the university.

Finally, the board approved the creation of the following new degree programs:

  • Bachelor of Applied Arts and Sciences in Event Management

  • Bachelor of Science in Event Management

  • Master of Science in Human Resources Management

The degrees now await certification from the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board and recognition by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools before they can be offered at the university.

TTUHSC students to see an increase in tuition and mandatory fees

Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center received approval from the board to increase the tuition across six schools at the university over the next three years starting in 2025. The School of Medicine saw a significant increase of 41% in board-authorized tuition, going from $850 in 2024 to $1,200 in 2025, where it will remain until 2027.

The School of Medicine will also see its annual mandatory Malpractice Insurance Fee increase 300% from $25 in 2024 to $100 in 2025.

Texas Tech regents OK coach and leadership contracts, freeze tuition rates

The School of Medicine, School of Health Professions, Graduate School of Biomedical Science, School of Nursing, School of Population and Public Health and the School of Pharmacy will all see around a 14% increase in designated tuition over the next three years.

Even with the approved tuition raises, TTU System Chancellor Tedd Mitchell said that TTUHSC and TTUHSC El Paso remain competitive in tuition rates, citing the U.S World Report rankings.

"Our institutions are always ranked in the top 10 least expensive schools of medicine in the United States," he said.

This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: Regents approves TTU academic growth, TTUHSC tuition increase