LSC-Tomball’s Jackie C. Thomas, Jr. Selected for Prestigious Fulbright U.S.-Germany Exchange Program
A familiar face on the Lone Star College-Tomball campus will soon be representing the community on the global stage. Dr. Jackie C. Thomas, Jr., vice president of student success, has been selected to participate in the prestigious 2025-26 Fulbright U.S.-Germany International Education Administrators (IEA) Program. This November, he’ll join a select group of administrators traveling to Berlin for a two-week professional development seminar.
The Fulbright IEA Program offers participants a rare opportunity to gain a firsthand understanding of Germany’s higher education landscape through meetings with institutional leaders, campus visits, and briefings with government officials. For Thomas, the trip also holds personal significance—he spent several childhood years in Darmstadt, Germany, and is eager to return with a new lens.
“When you work in higher education, we talk a lot about best practices,” Thomas shared. “That typically means taking a look at other institutions in your state, your region or your city. I'm really excited about expanding that to go beyond and really looking at how people are doing things internationally.”
Dr. Thomas has long been a champion for student engagement and success, building his career across nearly every corner of higher education—from residence life to classroom instruction. After beginning his student affairs journey at the University of Houston and earning a master’s in higher education administration from Florida State University, he went on to serve in roles at UH before joining LSC-Tomball in 2012 as a faculty member. He’s since risen through the ranks to oversee departments that directly impact students’ daily experiences—from outreach and admissions to advising and student activities.
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“I’ve worked in pretty much every side of higher education, from being faculty to working in marketing and communications, and professional development,” Thomas said. “So I'm back where it all started, and the departments that are within the division are so closely tied to students—from outreach to recruitment, to admission, to advising, to student activities.”
As part of his upcoming Fulbright experience, Thomas is particularly interested in Germany’s applied science vocational academies, a model he believes could offer valuable lessons for Lone Star College’s workforce training programs. That connection is especially timely as the LSC System continues to grow its career-focused pathways and maintain its role as one of Texas’s leading workforce education providers.
The Fulbright Scholar Program, sponsored by the U.S. Department of State, aims to foster mutual understanding between nations through educational exchange. Participants like Thomas receive full travel support and are immersed in educational models that could shape innovation in their home institutions.
Dr. Katharine Caruso, associate vice chancellor for Honors and International Education for the Lone Star College System, emphasized the program's importance to the system’s broader global engagement efforts.
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“We are thrilled to have Dr. Thomas represent Lone Star College System in Germany this fall as part of our ongoing global education initiatives,” Caruso said.
Thomas joins a growing list of Lone Star College educators who have participated in Fulbright programs. Notably, Claire Phillips, Ph.D., dean at LSC-CyFair, and John Theis, Ph.D., political science professor at LSC-Kingwood, received Fulbright awards in 2022-23. Their international projects helped create cross-border curriculum development and new study abroad partnerships. The Lone Star College System itself has been named a Fulbright Hispanic-Serving Institution Leader for two consecutive years (2023 and 2024), further solidifying its commitment to international exchange.
Serving over 90,000 students each semester, the Lone Star College System is the largest higher education institution in the Houston region. Under the leadership of Chancellor Mario K. Castillo, the college has been recognized as one of the 2024 Great Colleges to Work For® by The Chronicle of Higher Education. LSC-Tomball, located in a community that celebrates its German roots, now sees those connections come full circle with Dr. Thomas’s upcoming journey.
To learn more about the Fulbright IEA program, visit FulbrightScholars.org/US-Scholar-Awards/IEA. For more information about Lone Star College-Tomball, visit LoneStar.edu/Tomball.
Tiffany Krenek has been on the My Neighborhood News team since August 2021. She is passionate about curating and sharing content that enriches the lives of our readers in a personal, meaningful way. A loving mother and wife, Tiffany and her family live in the West Houston/Cypress region.
