The Latest Breaking News from M Katherine Banks

The Texas A&M University System Board of Regents named the former dean and four-star general as the sole finalist for president Friday. Many believe Welsh is the right person to move the university forward after a pair of controversies bruised the school’s morale.

Mark Welsh said that Texas A&M will stay the course on many controversial changes made by former President Kathy Banks. Professors welcomed Welsh’s commitment to faculty input moving forward.

The system’s board also plans to formally appoint an interim president after Katherine Banks resigned last week following news that the school changed its job offer to Kathleen McElroy, a Black journalism professor, after outcries from conservative groups.

The university has been rattled by two cases in which university officials were apparently rushed into making faculty employment decisions due to political pressure.

In the fallout from A&M’s failure to hire Kathleen McElroy, students and alumni lament the missed opportunity to revive the university’s journalism program and provide students with mentorship.

Hart Blanton, the head of the university’s department of communications and journalism, also said then-President M. Katherine Banks interfered with the recruitment of journalist Kathleen McElroy.

The university announced in June it hired Kathleen McElroy, a former New York Times journalist, to lead its journalism program. The hire quickly drew backlash from conservatives across Texas.

“The recent challenges regarding Dr. McElroy have made it clear to me that I must retire immediately,” Banks wrote in her resignation letter. “The negative press is a distraction from the wonderful work being done here.”

José Luis Bermúdez, who led the school’s College of Arts and Sciences, will leave his position after a deal to hire respected journalist Kathleen O. McElroy fell apart amid conservative pushback.