The school was founded in Jonesboro in 1909 by the Arkansas Legislature as a regional agricultural training school. It first offered a 2 year college program in 1918, then became "First District  Agricultural and Mechanical College" in 1925.

A 4 year degree program was started in 1930, then A & M College became "Arkansas State College" in 1933. The Arkansas Legislature elevated the college to university status and altered the name to Arkansas State University in 1967. The University now has more than 55,000 alumni.

Degree Programs:
Master's degree graduate programs were started in 1955, and the college began offering its 1st doctoral degree, in educational leadership, in the fall of 1992. A 2nd doctoral program, in environmental science, was started in the fall of 1997, and the doctoral program in heritage studies began in the fall of 2001.  The doctoral program in molecular biosciences started in the spring of 2006. Programs at the specialist's, master's, bachelor's and associate's degree levels are available through the various colleges: Communications, Education, Engineering, Agriculture, Business,  Fine Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences, Nursing and Health Professions, Sciences and Mathematics, and University College.  Classes also are offered through The Honors College and the independent Department of Military Science.