Where the West Begins, Texas A&M-Fort Worth Is Leading the Way

Bobby Ahdieh, who has served as dean of the law school since 2018 and is now chief operating officer of Texas A&M-Fort Worth, credits much of the school’s rise to its deep ties to Fort Worth. “We wanted residents to know that we aren’t just located in Fort Worth. We’re an active part of the community,” he explained, citing its 13 law clinics that allow students to gain experience while meeting the needs of local clients, as well as its fast-growing programs for non-lawyer professionals. “I think that mindset created fertile ground for the emergence of Texas A&M-Fort Worth.”

As conversations about the law school’s future evolved, so did the vision of Texas A&M’s presence in Fort Worth. “We realized our impact could be much bigger,” Ahdieh shared. “How could we align North Texas’ needs and opportunities with the university’s Tier One research and teaching capabilities?”

The answer: A public-private innovation hub that brings business and industry together with Texas A&M University, Tarleton State University and six of the Texas A&M System’s state agencies.

Supporting that vision will be five new buildings where instruction, research and collaboration will flourish. The first, an eight-story Law and Education Building, is set to open in 2026 and will feature law, health sciences and engineering programs, among others. Adjacent to this building, will be the first building of a two-phase Research and Innovation space that will support public-private research collaborations in engineering, aerospace, agriculture, health sciences, emergency response, law and more.

Pending approval from The Texas A&M System Board of Regents, three additional buildings will round out the campus: a virtual production studio supporting the university's award-winning visualization program; the second phase of the Research and Innovation Building; and a Gateway Building that will eventually replace the current law school building and serve as the campus’s front door.
 

Establishing a campus of this magnitude isn’t just dependent on industry partnerships; the generosity of donors—both Aggies and other friends—is critical to the campus’s success.

Few people understand this better than those who have already stepped forward to help. Fourth-generation Fort Worthian Lou Martin, who made a gift through the Nicholas and Louella Martin Fund at the North Texas Community Foundation, was inspired by her late father, Edward Lawrence Baker ’27. “My dad attended Texas A&M and later expanded Fort Worth by developing Wedgwood and Richland Hills after World War II,” she explained. “The new campus will bring talented students to the area and add vibrancy and growth to our downtown and the entire city, so it seemed like the perfect way to honor his legacy.”
 

Early on, the Amon G. Carter Foundation contributed downtown property as part of a $10.75 million commitment to signal its support for the new campus and the surrounding innovation district and to encourage others to consider similar gifts. John Robinson, its executive vice president, shared that the foundation had been waiting 50-plus years for a project with the impact of Texas A&M-Fort Worth.

“We expected that as the campus was built out, the local area would see massive growth in economic activity as well as thousands of new jobs created, both directly and indirectly,” he said. “The reality is that those things are already happening. Almost every week, there is another announcement of a new relationship, partnership or corporate investment tied to Texas A&M-Fort Worth.”
 

Steve Brauer ’02, a Fort Worth local and chair of the project’s capital campaign, has not only contributed to the cause but has also rallied community members around the campus. He noted that many individuals with no prior ties to Texas A&M have already given—something he believes is a testament to the potential impact of Texas A&M-Fort Worth. “You won’t find a city in America with more engaged and generous civic leaders,” Brauer continued. “And we’ve barely scratched the surface.”

Ahdieh credits donors like Martin, the Amon G. Carter Foundation and Brauer for laying the foundation for Texas A&M-Fort Worth, but said it’s time for more Aggies—even those not in Fort Worth—to get involved with the campus. “We need to show the rest of the world that we’re just as excited as they are about what the campus can accomplish,” he explained. “We have tremendous capacity to drive progress nationwide, starting from the foundation of Fort Worth and Aggies everywhere.”