History
Lamar University foremost began in September 17, 1923, as South Park Junior College. A junior college began operations on the unused third floor of the recently constructed South Park High School (nowadays South Park Middle School). South Park Junior College became a number one college inside Texas to receive Texas Department of Education approval when you took a 1st season of operation, & became fully licenced within 1925.

Around 1932, recognizing that a junior college experienced grown beyond serving a little part of the city of Beaumont, & was okay, serving the vicinity, the college renamed itself Lamar College, after Mirabeau B. Lamar. A next month, a separation of the college from either South Park High School began by using construction of newly facilities. By 1942, the college was totally independent of the South Park school territory, & operations moved to the todays campus.

By using a prevent of World War II, an influx of war veterans boosted enrollment, & the Lamar board of trustees decided to ask a Texas Legislature to promote Lamar College to a quaternion-season state college. A initial attempt around 1947, lead by Texas Representative Jack Brooks failed, but a as a consequence month a necessary bill passed each houses. In June 14, 1949, Governor Beauford Jester signed the bill creating Lamar State College of Technology, sustaining a fresh a cappella to focus in engineering & science, an emphasis that continues in todays world.

A college's enrollment continued to develop throughout a 1950s and 1960s, reaching 10,000 students, but in the 1970s enrollment plateaued. Inside 1969, Lamar State College opened its first branch around Orange, Texas. Within 1970, Lamar State College began offering its first doctorial program, a Doctor of Engineering, & inside 1971 the college's name was officially changed to Lamar University.

1975 brought another branch for the university, by owning it merging by using Port Arthur College within Port Arthur, Texas, creating Lamar University-Port Arthur. Around 1983, state Senator Carl Parker sponsored a bill creating a Lamar University Models, & around 1986, Lamar University-Orange and Lamar University-Port Arthur were granted accreditation separate from either a independent campus.

Within 1993, an audit by the state of Texas revealed many shortage in the Lamar University Models budget. Inside 1995, a Lamar University Models was incorporated into the Texas State University System, with a Orange & Port Arthur campuses becoming separate respire in a patterns. Since a reorganization, Lamar University's enrollment has rebounded, & many construction projects use revitalized or even replaced old buildings.

Campus
A Lamar University campus is placed in Martin Luther King Boulevard, near U.S. Highway 69, in the southeast part of Beaumont, Texas. Facilities include a 10,000 seat Montagne Center arena, & a eight story Mary & John Gray Library.

In the late 1990s, Lamar began undertaking campus improvement projects. Virtually all buildings on the campus dated to the late 1960s & 70s & experienced deteriorated since. Numerous older buildings in the northern a portion of the campus were gutted & refinished of these-by-1.

Inside 2001, the University began replacing its 1960s-vintage dormitories with new apartment-style housing facilities, dubbed "Cardinal Village," operated by the personal house American Campus Communities. Older campus housing facilities stand been demolished when Cardinal Village expanded to meet require. Require for in-campus housing has risen, coinciding by using a opening of the recently residence hall. As of April 2005, a newly dining hall was under construction touching a housing complex & is scheduled to open around December 2005 [http://www.lamar.edu/news/story.asp?ID=889].

Within March 2005, the McDonald Gymnasium was closed. the gymnasium is undergoing renovations & might to a higher degree double around size when these are remade into a recently unpaid sports center [http://www.lamar.edu/announce/student_rec/popup1.htm].

Sports
Lamar University occurs as member of the Southland Conference, participating in men & women's basketball, baseball, and more sports. Lamar doesn't have the football program, which is unusual for a Texas training institution. A football program was drop by 1989, largely due to budget overruns & declining attendance.

Conference & National Championships
South Conference Baseball – 1971, ’75, ’76, ’77, ’79, ’81, ’84, ’85, ’03, ‘04 Men’s Basketball – 1964, ’70, ’78, ’79, ’80, ’81, ’83, ’84, ‘00 Football – 1964, ’65, ’66, ‘71 Men’s Golf game – 1964, ’65, ’66, ’67, ’68, ’69, ’70, ’71, ’72, ’73, ’81, ’82, ’83, ’85, ’86, ’87, ‘01, ’02, ‘03 Men’s Track & Field – 1971, ’78, ’79, ’80, ’81, ’82, ’83, ’84, ’85, ‘86 Men’s Lawn tennis – 1967, ’73, ’74, ’75, ‘76 Women’s Lawn tennis – 1983, ‘84 Volleyball – 1983, ’84, ‘01

Sun Belt Conference Baseball – 1993 Women’s Basketball – 1992 Women’s Golf game – 1993, ’94, ’95, ‘96 Volleyball – 1993, ‘97

Only Star Conference Men’s Basketball – 1961, ’62, ‘63 Football – 1954 Men’s Golf game – 1953, ’54, ’55, ’56, ’57, ’58, ’59, ’60, ’61, ’62, ‘63 Men’s Lawn tennis – 1952, ’53, ’54, ’55, ’56, ’57, ’58, ’59, ’60, ’61, ’62, ‘63 Men’s Track & Field – 1963

U.s. To the south Conference Women’s Basketball – 1991 Women’s Lawn tennis – 1988 Men’s Track & Field – 1988, ‘89 Women’s Track & Field – 1992 Volleyball – 1987, ‘90

NAIA National Championships Men’s Lawn tennis – 1955, ’56, ’57, ’58, ’59, ‘60 Men’s Golf game – 1956, ’57, ’58, ’59, ‘60

NCAA College Section National Championships Men’s Golf game – 1967, ‘68

Completely-Americans Men’s & Women’s Track & Field – 39 Men’s Basketball – 3 Women’s Basketball – 1 Men’s Golf game – 9 Women’s Golf game – 5 Men’s & Women’s Tennis – 18 Volleyball – 1