[5] The university has a main campus, an extension building in north Killeen, and a site location on the United States Army post at Fort Cavazos.

[6] ATU initially concentrated on technological programs, but the university gradually shifted its focus to the liberal arts, counseling psychology, and criminal justice.

[6] UCT subsequently experienced substantial growth, doubling its enrollment from 500 students in 1988 to over 1,000 in 1997, and moved to a new facility located next to Central Texas College.

[6] Despite UCT's success, local citizens still desired a state-supported university, so then-Governor George W. Bush initiated an advanced study into the need for higher education in the Killeen area.

[6] To that end, the Central Texas University Task Force (CTUTF) was created in 1995, and their work resulted in several recommendations: Primarily, the CTUTF recommended that Central Texas College should remain intact, UCT should dissolve and turn over its assets to the state, and Tarleton State University should establish a campus in Killeen and offer junior-, senior-, and graduate-level courses.

[8] On July 22, 2011, the Board of Regents appointed Dr. Margaret "Peg" Gray-Vickrey as the university's provost and vice president for academic and student affairs.

[9] Dr. Gray-Vickrey was selected in part because of her experience in helping to develop FGCU and guide its substantial growth in the 2000s, a feat which A&M-Central Texas is currently attempting to replicate.

[9] On July 2, 2012, the university announced the hiring of Dr. Russell Porter, a former United States Air Force captain, as the associate vice president of graduate studies and research.

Separate accreditation will allow the university to diversify and expand its program and course offerings, and address the regional upper-level education needs.

[18] Many graduates of the program are currently serving as pilots and aviation managers for regional and national airlines, the US military, and private charter companies.

[21] The center offers counseling services free of charge to university students, faculty, and staff, and to members of the local community at a low cost, based on family income.

[22] Both the counseling center and the psychology department are especially important to the Killeen/Fort Cavazos area, as many local citizens suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder and/or traumatic brain injury relating to military service.

[27] Overall future campus development will include 19 academic buildings totaling 1,600,000 square feet (150,000 m2), four general-use buildings totaling 325,000 square feet (30,200 m2), a student union recreation/wellness center, a conference center, a dining hall, 1,800 beds of student housing in five phases, athletic and recreation facilities, a 30,000-person-capacity football stadium, a 10,000-person-capacity baseball field, an 8,000-person-capacity indoor arena, 22 acres (0.089 km2) of outdoor recreation space (soccer, track, tennis, softball, etc.