Garth Howard is a seasoned higher education leader with nearly two decades of progressive leadership experience driving student success, institutional effectiveness, and community engagement. He currently serves as the Associate Vice Chancellor for Student Services, System Office, where he leads systemwide efforts that empower students to navigate academic, personal, and professional pathways while advancing innovative, high-impact practices that foster community involvement, operational excellence, and sustained student achievement and retention.

His career at Lone Star College includes such roles as Dean of Student Development, and Interim Vice President for Student Success at LSC–Kingwood. Prior to joining Lone Star College, he served as Director of Student Engagement and Leadership at Marygrove College in Detroit, Michigan. Across these positions, he has championed innovative programming, cross-functional collaboration, and equitable student-centered practices.

Before entering higher education, Mr. Howard spent 15 years in the automotive industry with Ford Motor Company, managing Customer Services, Procurement, and Material Planning and Logistics, where he also earned his Six Sigma Certification leading major process-improvement initiatives that enhanced service quality, operational efficiency, and customer satisfaction—experience that continues to shape his data-driven, systems-oriented leadership approach.

A committed advocate for youth and community empowerment, he has led and supported student initiatives at institutions such as the W.E.B. DuBois Academy, the Catherine C. Blackwell Institute, Sigma Beta Club, Young Men and Young Women in Transition, the Hispanic Institute for Males (HIM), and the African American Institute for Males (AAIM). In Houston, he spearheaded a major revitalization effort for the Family Time Crisis and Counseling Center, improving its food donation intake system and facility grounds to better support survivors of domestic and sexual violence.

Mr. Howard holds an MBA from Baker College in Auburn Hills, Michigan, and a Bachelor of Arts in Communication from St. Mary’s College, Orchard Lake, Michigan where he was a four-year scholar-athlete and Academic and Athletic All-American. He also attended and completed the Institute for Administrators in Catholic Higher Education at the Lynch School of Education and Human Development at Boston College in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts.

Widely regarded as an energetic, mission-driven leader, Mr. Howard is deeply committed to “super serving students” and believes every member of the academy contributes to the student’s educational experience and journey. His career reflects that philosophy through operational excellence, compassionate leadership, and an unwavering dedication to student success.

Office of Student Success and Completion

The Office of Student Success and Completion is responsible for student success and completion initiatives college-wide. Key initiatives include Guided Pathways, the First Year Experience, Achieving the Dream, 60x30TX and Excellence in Academic Advising. The office also provides operational support and strategic coordination of completion initiatives, student success, advising and student records college-wide. 

Dual Credit & Early College High Schools

Provides leadership in the planning, design, coordination, implementation and evaluation of a comprehensive college readiness program that involves students, their parents, and the community while serving as a vital link between Lone Star College's network of P12 schools and post-secondary education. We partner with independent school districts, charter schools, private schools, and home school parents to offer courses in the core curriculum, foreign languages, and workforce education.