Features

Building the Future

The 2025–2035 Campus Master Plan lays out Texas State’s bold vision for the next decade

February 19, 2026
Matt Joyce

The 2025–2035 Campus Master Plan lays out Texas State’s bold vision for the next decade

February 19, 2026
Matt Joyce

When asked about the hardest part of creating the Texas State University 2025–2035 Campus Master Plan, Eric Algoe doesn’t hesitate.

“That’s an easy answer—the biggest challenge was deciding what not to do,” says Algoe, TXST’s executive vice president for operations and chief financial officer. “There’s never a shortage of amazing ideas about things we would love to do, but we’ve got to be selective about what we realistically can do in the next 10 years. I think people are going to be inspired by it.”

Approved by the Texas State University System Board of Regents in May, the Master Plan lays out a roadmap to facilitate TXST’s ambitions as a top-flight research institution
and its projected growth to 50,000 students. The plan calls for the construction of 30 new buildings on the San Marcos Campus and six new buildings on the Round Rock Campus—from research labs to student housing and cultural amenities.

But new facilities—and a long list of facility renovations—are only part of the equation, as President Kelly Damphousse notes. “At its core, the Master Plan embraces the natural beauty that makes our campuses in San Marcos and Round Rock so special,” he says.

The plan prioritizes enhancing green spaces to foster gathering, connection, and reflection. Accessibility is also central to our vision. As our university continues to grow and thrive, we are committed to creating a campus that is welcoming and easy to navigate for all.”

President Kelly Damphousse

The Campus Master Plan Steering and Executive committees, along with planning consultants, embarked on the plan’s development in July 2023. The 18-month process included three open houses, a survey, and over 80 focus groups and meetings. The
planners documented more than 2,400 community-engagement interactions.

“It was a very collaborative experience,” says Kiersten Florence, a 2024 graduate who served on the Steering Committee in her role as student body president. “As a student, I feel like I definitely had a voice everybody wanted to hear. I came to understand just how much thought, collaboration, and care goes into shaping a vision that can impact every corner of the university.”

Florence says she fielded a range of feedback from students. “One of the biggest things I heard was the need for accessibility and the importance of preserving Texas State as a beautiful campus,” she says. “What excites me most about the Master Plan is how
it captures the essence and natural beauty of TXST.”

The 362-page document focuses on five key themes: Student Success & Experience; Academic Excellence; Discovery & Research; Community & Connectivity; and Stewardship of Resources. Each section is packed with projects. We’ll highlight a few here:
 

Student Success & Experience

illustration of person lying on bed while writing in book

Hilltop Phase 2: 1,500 new beds

Hilltop Phase 2 calls for replacing Smith and Arnold halls on the San Marcos Campus with modern residence halls that together add about 1,500 new beds. Hilltop Phase 2 also includes a new 600-seat dining hall. Expanding the Student Health Center is another priority.

Academic Excellence

illustration of mariachi musician playing instrument

85,000 ft.2 new Music Building

A new Integrated Science & Discovery Building would house interdisciplinary STEM programs and the Chemistry and Biochemistry departments. An 85,000-square-foot new Music Building would feature state-of-the-art classrooms and rehearsal spaces.

Discovery & Research

illustration of two people standing next to large orange crane

168,000 ft.2 new STEM Building

An expansion of STAR Park would add new multi-tenant buildings to expand its capacity as an incubator for startup companies in technology and the sciences. The STEM Quad will be enhanced by the new 942-bed Richard A. Castro Hall, and adding new STEM-focused facilities and a new pedestrian bridge over Comanche Street.

Community & Connectivity

illustration of football player catching a football

TXST fields 16 intercollegiate sports teams

Along with renovations at Spring Lake and Sewell Park, the Master Plan calls for rebuilding the intersection of Aquarena Springs Drive and Sessom Drive as a T-intersection to improve safety while creating a new front door for campus. The plan would add new “signature exterior spaces,” such as Bobcat Landing, an outdoor event space on Chautauqua Hill that would displace the 1950s-era president’s residence.

The community theme also incorporates athletics upgrades, including a Baseball and Softball Clubhouse, UFCU Stadium Bridge, the South End Zone Complex, and Indoor Practice Facility.

“I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention parking,” Algoe adds. “We’re very focused on it—parking and transit. The plan includes more parking and a better transit system.”

Stewardship of Resources

illustration of two people in nursing scrubs looking at clip board

The Stewardship of Resources theme underscores the Master Plan’s attention to coordinated infrastructure planning, fiscal readiness and capital forecasting, and the long-term preservation of natural space at the Round Rock Campus.  

More broadly in Round Rock, the Master Plan lays out new buildings for housing and academics to be constructed based on student population growth. A proposed Arch Building would serve as a combination student center, recreation center, and library.  

Algoe says the Master Plan process not only brought in students, faculty, staff members, and alumni; the planners also collaborated with city officials and residents in San Marcos and Round Rock.  

Master Plan ambitions are already taking shape across the university. Algoe points to this summer’s groundbreaking for a new 150-room, full-service hotel on the San Marcos Campus. The four-star hotel will bring a new type of lodging to the city.

“The future of a university evolves over many decades and generations of students and employees,” he says. “We need a plan that we have collaboratively developed with wide input from stakeholders and the larger communities we serve. It’s important that we develop this shared vision for all of us to follow.” 

Play Video

The Current

Watch as TXST President Kelly Damphousse and CFO Eric Algoe discuss the vision and details of the Campus Master Plan on The Current podcast. 

Continue Reading

Matt Joyce

Matt Joyce is the Editorial Manager for TXST's Division of Marketing and Communications.