Texas A&M University System  The Texas A&M University System is a state university system in Texas and is one of the state's six independent university systems. The Texas A&M University System is one of the largest systems of higher education in the United States, with a budget of $6.3 billion. Through a statewide network of 11 universities and eight state agencies, and the RELLIS Campus, the Texas A&M System educates more than 153,000 students and makes more than 22 million additional educational contacts through service and outreach programs each year. System-wide, research and development expenditures exceeded $996 million in FY 2017 and helped drive the state’s economy. The system's flagship institution is Texas A&M University in College Station. The founding member of the A&M System is Texas A&M University, established in 1876. Prairie View A&M, also established in 1876, is an HBCU. Many of the member universities and agencies joined the A&M System decades after being established. Its flagship institution is Texas A&M University. The institution now named The University of Texas at Arlington was a member from 1917 to 1965. With a direct presence in all 254 Texas counties, A&M System agencies offer research and service to the state's citizens. The agencies focused on addressing and improving the social, economic, educational, health and environmental conditions of Texans. Established in 1999, the HSC is a part of Texas A&M University and reaches across all parts of Texas through its six components: Texas A&M University College of Dentistry at Dallas; the College of Medicine at College Station, Temple, Dallas, Round Rock, and Houston; the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences at Dallas, College Station and Houston; the Institute of Biosciences and Technology at Houston; the School of Public Health at College Station and McAllen; and the latest addition, the Irma Lerma Rangel College of Pharmacy at Kingsville. Southern regions of the state also are further served by the Coastal Bend Health Education Center, which covers the 19-county region surrounding Corpus Christi and Kingsville, and the South Texas Center at McAllen. The HSC received full accreditation in December 2002 from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools to award baccalaureate, master’s, doctoral and professional degrees. Its components are accredited by accrediting organizations specific to their areas. The Health Science Center in 2013 was merged into Texas A&M University proper and is no longer an independent institution.