About Us:

Ranger College occupies a 50-acre campus within the city limits of Ranger, an Eastland County community of approximately 3,000 people located just north of Interstate 20 between Fort Worth and Abilene. The beautifully wooded rolling hills and several lakes provide ample opportunities for hunting, fishing, and outdoor recreation, while the City of Ranger has excellent schools and churches and a congenial, supportive citizenry. Its proximity to the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex is another advantage.

College classes are also offered at numerous off-campus locations in neighboring cities. In Brown County, a Vocational Nursing Program is offered in Early and a Cosmetology Program is offered in Brownwood, the county seat. Continuing Education and a limited number of academic courses are offered in Early and in Stephenville, the home of Tarleton State University. These programs have an annual enrollment in excess of 125 students. A program in academic studies is offered at the Comanche Center in Comanche, the county seat of Comanche County where annual enrollments average about 400 students. Comanche, located 25 miles from Brownwood, is a thriving city of 4,000 population with an economy based on food processing, livestock feed processing, agriculture, and a lively trade in both peanuts and pecans.

Ranger College is one of the oldest public two-year colleges in continuous operation in the state of Texas. Its history actually predates the legislation authorizing and establishing junior colleges in the state. In August 1925, the Board of Education of the Ranger Public Schools voted to proceed with plans for establishment of a junior college. On September 13, 1926, the College opened with thirty students enrolled. The College operated under the supervision of a college council composed of three members of the Board of Education and nine other Ranger citizens. The College was recognized by the State Department of Education on March 23, 1927. The first state statute authorizing the establishment of a junior college was passed by the 41st Texas Legislature in 1929.

The College operated under this statute until the passage of the "Validation of Junior College District Acts'' by the 45th Legislature in 1937. Ranger College continued to operate as part of the public school system until August 18, 1950. On this date, the Board of Education voted to separate the Junior College and the public schools. As a result of this action, Ranger Junior College, after 24 years of joint operation with the public school system, became a unit within itself. In this separate unit, Dr. G. C. Boswell became the first official President of the College. The College has operated continuously as an autonomous educational institution overseen by a Board of Regents since that date.