Texas A&M University

Texas Target Communities

Website | ttc.arch.tamu.edu

Texas Target Communities (TxTC) at Texas A&M University, founded in 1993, provides technical assistance to small, low capacity communities across the state and focuses on holistic efforts to reveal and validate persistent problems, illuminate strengths, discover promising strategies, and enable emerging opportunities (i.e. civic, environmental, economic, etc.). TxTC engages with communities by matching them with the knowledge and experience of TAMU faculty members that lead students as they participate and work to apply their knowledge and skills to real world projects. By doing so, TxTC fulfills the university’s mission of teaching, research, and service. Between 2013 and 2021, 142 faculty and 1,560 students across 87 different courses worked in 45 communities. The projects included 230 community meetings culminating in over 407,000 student hours worked, valued at more than $11.6 million for communities across Texas. 

TxTC’s goal and intent is to be community-focused, meeting communities where they are and instilling inclusive planning practices to engage communities within communities. Such participatory community processes have strengthened the social networks of our partners, enabled complex problem solving, and enhanced student learning in the classroom. TxTC aims to facilitate the transformation of communities from high risk/low opportunity to equitable, resilient, and adaptive by mitigating threats to the economy, environment, and culture.

Fun Facts about Texas Target Communities

• TxTC is the community engagement arm of the Institute for Sustainable Communities (IfSC) at Texas A&M University (http://ifsc.tamu.edu/). IfSC is transforming interdisciplinary research, learning, and engagement by working alongside community-based organizations to tackle the toughest environmental justice issues in Houston and around the world.
• Because of the comprehensive plan developed by students, TxTC helped the City of Nolanville obtain more than $3 million in federal and state grant funds.
• TxTC’s inclusive plan-making approach resulted in the cities within Liberty County coming together for the first time to strategize development pressures from Houston and flooding. The county planning committee continues to meet and cities are now folding strategies into their own initiatives.

Year Program Established | 1993
Country | US
Federal Region of Program | 6

Public or Private Institution | Public
Number of students at institution | 72,982

Highlight Articles/Videos

Texas Target Communities Impact Report
Students, residents in Houston neighborhood to create plan combating polluted conditions by Richard Nira
Texas Target Communities helping communities plan for future
Judge: Future is right for Liberty County in 2017 by David Taylor
Five Year Review 2013-2018
2019-2020 Annual Report

Jaimie shares about the amazing work by students participating in TTC

City Partners

2014 – 2015 | City of Nolanville • Population: 5,496
2015 – 2016 | Liberty County • Population: 88,219
2017 – 2018 | City of La Grange • Population: 4,667
2017 – 2018 | City of Buffalo • Population: 1,917
2017 – 2018 | Manchester/Harrisburg and Sunnyside/South Park Neighborhoods
2018 – 2019 | Hitchcock and Rockport Neighborhoods
2018 – 2019 | Grimes County • Population: 27,984
2018 – 2019 | North Lufkin • Population: 35,021
2018 – 2019 | Morgan’s Point • Population: 4,460
2019 – 2020 | Willacy County • Population: 21,515
2019 – 2020 | City of Nolanville • Population: 5,496
2019 – 2020 | City of Montgomery • Population: 1,575
2019 – 2020 | City of Columbus • Population: 3,617
2019 – 2020 | Real County • Population: 3,408
2019 – 2020 | City of Jacksonville • Population: 14,790
2019 – 2020 | City of Wallis • Population: 1,571
2019 – 2020 | North Lufkin • Population: 35,021
2020 – 2021 | City of Caldwell • Population: 4,315
2020 – 2021 | Comanche County • Population: 13,529
2020 – 2021 | City of Wharton • Population: 8,711
2020 – 2021 | Galena Park • Population: 10,983

Contact Info

Jaimie Masterson
Director
(979) 458-1295
jmasterson@arch.tamu.edu

Jeewasmi Thapa
Program Coordinator
(979) 458-3121
jthapa@arch.tamu.edu

Testimonial

“TTC was definitely a strength to foster collaboration. The final open house, where students presented recommendations, was a great example of this collaboration with over 100 residents and one of my best days as City Manager. Also, I framed and hung the community vision boards with goals (developed by the students) in my office. When people come into my office and ask what they want to do (in the city), I point to the boards and show them the community’s vision. The city was stagnant before and TTC helped reenergize the community.” – Kara Escajeda, Nolanville City Manager.