at the Department of Psychology and Special Education at Texas A & M - Commerce

Texas A & M-Commerce was founded by William Mayo in 1889 as East Texas Normal College under the creed "ceaseless industry, fearless investigation, unfettered thought, and unselfish service to others." From 1917 until 1996 the institution was widely known as East Texas State. In 1997 the university joined the A & M System.

Like a large number of other psychology departments across America, ours emerged in the early 1960s. With its roots in pedagogy, the program has always been housed in the College of Education. The relationship between psychology and special education also runs deep here, with the programs having long been joined. The current emphasis on "cognition and instruction" emerged in the late '90s, reflecting our commitment to evolve and develop curricula to meet the changing needs of our students.

The Department's conference room honors the program's first four heads: Psychologists Jesse Franklin (PhD Texas), Monroe Lanmon (PhD Texas), Glenn Fournet (PhD Louisiana State), and Paul Zelhart (PhD Alberta).