Howard Payne is a terrific school. Filled with a wonderful staff and facilities. Teachers work well with schedules and the courses are well managed. I personally would recommend it to anyone who is interested. read more

Just so that parents are aware, we sent our son to Howard Payne after visiting the school and speaking with teachers, coaches and admissions. All assured us that our son would be protected, looked after, mentored, supported and tutored. They promised us that we would have no worries in sending our son to their school because, they were not like the huge universities, they were a small, close-knit campus where everyone knows everyone and all take interest in each others well being. Well...Our son spiraled into a major depression after the first week at school. He quit attending classes, skipped meals, football practice, study halls, etc. He didn't even emerge from his room for over a week. Then he just got up and left. We tried for over a week to reach him and finally called the university office. Two days later, I called the university again and this time they told me I needed to call the dorm manager. When I spoke with the dorm manager, he said he would call me back because he wasn't aware of any issues with our son. He eventually called to tell us that our son had not been seen or heard from in over two weeks. We immediately called the police and filed a missing persons report. For a week, we feared the worst and the university took no interest in helping to find our kid and no accountability for his absence or for notifying us. Their response was, he is an adult and it is not their responsibility to track adults. That was a complete contradiction to the crap they feed us at our initial visit. We eventually found our son, in an extreme episode of depression, living homeless and penniless in Amarillo, more than 600 miles from home. The upside of this story is that our son is fine, at home and attending community college. However, after two years and more than $13K in tuition, the university is still trying to bill us for small, minor costs. We pay one bill, then a few months later, we get another bill for $200 of so. I'm done! Not paying anything else and warning the world NOT to send their children off to this college. read more

Just had to write a review to go with the terrible one listed. I graduated from HPU in December of 09' and absolutely loved it. I went to a small high school and was really looking for a college where I could be involved and experience the most I could. I was not disappointing at all. After completing my basics, class sizes became incredibly small and comfortable and all of my professors knew who I was and took a genuine concern in my education. In fact I was able to graduate early because one of my professors and I figured out a class plan that could get me out in 3.5 years. The school isn't any more magical than any other college you could attend. If you are going to get the most out of your college experience, you have to get out and meet people. I sympathize with the parent above, but if this student mentally checked out after only a week of school, he did not give either his Resident Assistant, Resident Director, or any of his professors a chance to know him, or his struggles. I was a resident assistant for two years and I spent both of them on the fourth floor of Jennings Hall where there are about 50 incoming freshman made up of about 90% football players. I cannot tell you how common it is for these young men to come in thinking they are the next big thing and when they find out they're not leave the school, often without telling anyone they are leaving. My numbers usually dropped from that 50 to about 30 in two weeks. Not wanting to make excuses for anybody, the story mentioned is terrible, but I can assure you it is not the norm. By the time I graduated I knew almost everyone's name on campus and hated to leave. I met my wife at HPU and now have a great job that I have felt more than equipped for. I would recommend this college to any incoming freshman looking for that small college atmosphere where they can make friends and be involved. read more