CAMPUS SPOTLIGHT: St. Mary’s Catholic Center at Texas A&M, College Station, TX

They say that “Everything is bigger in Texas” which rings true from St. Mary’s Catholic Center, located in College Station, Texas.  St. Mary’s serves over 4000 Aggie Catholics at mass each Sunday.  Not only do they see their students on Sunday, but over half of them participate in at least one organization.  With over 1500 students in discipleship, St. Mary’s is truly fulfilling their mission to “Form Apostles for the Church and World”. 

Several campuses travel to College Station each year to visit with their staff to see what and how they do.  The common question is “what’s the secret sauce?”   There are a number of things that contribute to the success of St. Mary’s. 

The support of the Diocese of Austin to give their parish fantastic priests

  • The nature of Texas Aggies who love tradition, find the beauty of the tradition in the Catholic faith. 

  • The deep roots of Catholicism

  • Longevity: St. Mary’s has been doing campus ministry since 1904

  • St. Mary’s has a large donor base and has had a development officer for over 2 decades. 

While these are all significant reasons for the success of St. Mary’s, the number one contributing factor is the way they share what they’ve received.  The students and staff are committed to daily prayer, reception of the sacraments and ongoing formation.  “They devoted themselves to the teaching of the apostles and to the communal life, to the breaking of the bread and to the prayers” Acts 2:42

Aggie Catholics form their students on how to hear the call of Jesus, and then how to pursue Him.  They live authentic friendships well and cultivate a culture of virtue and embracing Church teaching.  They accompany their students in their service to the poor and learn how to boldly proclaim Jesus Christ as their savior.   

The St. Mary’s staff has always been very generous in sharing resources, supporting other campuses with phone calls and hosting them for campus visits.  They’re looking forward to hosting CCMA’s annual conference “CALLED2024”  this summer. 

-Mark Knox, Director of Campus Ministry at St. Mary’s Catholic Center, Texas A&M

Matthew Alpaugh