The Battalion — July 29, 2023

Events following Banks’ resignation

Texas A&M President M. Katherine Banks tendered her resignation to Chancellor John Sharp on the evening of July 20, effective immediately.

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

The departure comes only two days after Banks’ assertion that the administration was unaware of the developments that caused McElroy’s botched hiring at a special Faculty Senate meeting left faculty bewildered.

“I am ashamed to wear my ring,” faculty senator of the School of Veterinary Medicine and former student Dana Gaddy said shortly after Banks left halfway through the discussion to attend another “very important” meeting.

The Senate passed a resolution 55-5 to establish an independent fact-finding committee to look into the McElroy controversy following widespread lack of satisfaction with Banks’

statements.

Gen. Mark A. Welsh III, dean of the Bush School of Government and Public Service, was appointed as acting president.

The next day, a document emailed to select Texas A&M faculty by Hart Blanton, Ph.D., head of the Department of Communications

represented that the decision making that led to the crisis was at the department level. To the contrary, President Banks injected herself into the process atypically and early on.” Blanton said at least one administrator attributed the scrutiny McElroy’s candidacy received from the university to her race.

ulty Senate meeting that the administration was unaware of, was made without Blanton’s approval, Blanton said. The offer included terms for a one-year contract as director and professor of practice without tenure upon arrival. Despite this, the offer still contained his signature.

“I was shocked to learn an earlier draft of a job offer letter for Dr. McElroy was altered and sent to her without my advance knowledge,” Blanton said. “The altered draft retained my electronic signature, but reduced the appointment from an earlier-discussed multiyear term to one.”

Blanton did not offer any speculation on where the one-year offer originated beyond his statement, but said he was “pleased” by Banks’ departure

The document concluded with a call for a comprehensive investigation on the failed McElroy hire.

and Journalism, stated Banks was dishonest about Kathleen McElroy’s botched hiring during the July 19 emergency Faculty Senate meeting and claimed his signature was forged on the second written offer sent to McElroy by the university.

Blanton said contrary to Banks’ claims, the administration was unusually present during the hiring of McElroy.

“Then-President M. Katherine Banks misled the Faculty Senate,” Blanton wrote. “She

“The unusual level of scrutiny being given to the hiring of Dr. McElroy was acknowledged by one administrator to have been based, at least in part, on race,” Blanton said. “Regardless of the source of any such pressure, I understand it to be illegal for any employer — much less a public university — to subject a job candidate to stricter scrutiny due to her race or color.”

The subsequent, diminished offer made to McElroy, which Banks stated during the Fac-

“I request a full and independent investigation of these incidents to be conducted,” Blanton wrote. “Lest they be repeated.”

Blanton’s legal representation, David Schleicher, said the statement was made in Blanton’s personal capacity and that Blanton does not plan on making further public comment.

Shortly afterward, Vice Chancellor for Marketing and Communications Laylan Copelin issued a statement that the A&M System’s Office of General Counsel was commencing an investigation of the McElroy controversy.

By Jack Lee

@JackTheBatt

Blanton dismisses Banks following her departure from A&M

President M. Katherine Banks speaks to faculty after delivering her State of the University at Annenberg Presidential Conference Center on Wednesday, Sept. 28, 2022.

Ishika Samant -- THE BATTALION

“

I was pleased to see that the President resigned,” Blanton wrote. “Texas A&M cannot have leaders misleading the faculty, public, or policymakers about how we conduct business.

Opioid lecture causes concerns on free speech

The fallout following Alonzo’s temporary suspension in March

By Mia Putham and Caleb Elizondo @aeoania @CalebElizondo7

On Tuesday, July 25, The Texas Tribune reported Texas A&M clinical assistant professor Joy Alonzo, PharmD, was suspended in March after remarking about Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and his role in the opioid crisis during her lecture.

Alonzo, a well-respected expert in the pharmaceutical field and on the opioid epidemic, gave routine lectures on the opioid crisis at the University of Texas Medical Branch, or UTMB. In March, a complaint was made by a student in the audience, soon flagging her comments to higher-ups in the Texas A&M University System, according to The Texas Tribune. This controversy is especially tumultuous for A&M due to the investigation into the mishandling of Kathleen McElroy’s failed hiring and the stepping down of then-President M. Katherine Banks on July 21. National news sources have picked up the story of Alonzo’s suspension and censure after The Texas Tribune article showed evidence of Patrick directly texting with A&M University System Chancellor John Sharp about Alonzo’s comments.

“Joy Alonzo has been placed on administrative leave pending investigation re firing her,” the message from Sharp read that was sent to the lieutenant governor only hours after Alonzo’s lecture finished.

The Texas Tribune was also able to receive emails that Alonzo sent after her suspension, which detailed how a student close to Texas A&M leadership prompted the investigation. The Texas Tribune reported A&M confirmed the investigation was started by Texas Land Commissioner Dawn Buckingham, a close friend of Sharp’s.

The internal investigation found no wrongdoing and Alonzo kept

her job. However, on July 25, the Faculty Senate Executive Committee sent a letter to Sharp expressing concerns of political influence on faculty affairs and appointments.

Although Alonzo has been given her position back after an investigation by A&M into her comments during the lecture in March, the controversy has brought more national attention to outside political influence within A&M classrooms.

New policies enacted by the Texas legislature in the 2023 session have placed more restrictions on universities and their staff, notably including Senate Bill 17, which will ban diversity, equity and inclusion offices in public universities and Senate Bill 18. This instills regulations around tenure for professors.

The interactions between politics and universities, both within the classroom and the structure,

Major approved

utive Committee requested Sharp to appear at the next faculty senate meeting on Aug. 14.

“We recently wrote to you to express our concerns about the appearance of political influence in actions regarding the hiring, tenure and promotion of faculty,” the letter reads. “Now we find another case in which there is no longer the appearance, but actual evidence, of interference by outside political forces to erode the academic freedom of Texas A&M faculty.”

The committee said the event could harm A&M’s reputation, faculty recruitment and free expression.

“This is not only having a chilling effect on our faculty but is further damaging the national reputation of our university,” the letter reads. “And it will make it even more difficult to recruit and retain the best and brightest talent.”

The committee said they hope to come to an agreement in direction as to avoid similar issues in the future.

“We are requesting that you meet with the full Faculty Senate to discuss these issues and the steps that can be taken to prevent further episodes such as this in the coming academic year,” the letter reads. “Our next Senate meeting is scheduled for Aug. [14], but we are more than willing to schedule a special meeting earlier at your request.”

In response to the letter from the Faculty Senate, Vice Chancellor of Marketing and Communications Laylan Copelin later released a statement that the internal investigation had concluded with all parties satisfied.

are becoming more intertwined in Texas. This recent controversy of Alonzo’s suspension because of her comments on a political office and McElroy’s mishandled hiring has shown what could be in store for Texas public universities that challenge Texas political offices in the coming academic year.

Following news that A&M put professor Alonzo under administrative leave, the Faculty Senate Exec-

“The campus conducted an independent investigation with no interference from Chancellor John Sharp,” Copelin said. “Furthermore, Dr. Joy Alonzo says she has no issue with how the university handled her case. If the faculty wants to suggest changes to the process, Chancellor Sharp said that would be up to Acting President Mark Welsh and the university community since the Chancellor’s Office does not dictate those policies to our 11 universities.”

Upcoming meeting

Journalism

B.S., B.A. revived at Texas A&M proceeding 19 year drought

By Ana Renfroe @aeoenia

On Thursday, July 27, the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, or THECB, unanimously approved Texas A&M’s reinstated journalism degree program.

The degree will fall under the College of Arts and Sciences and be administered by the Department of Communication and Journalism. Students will be able to enroll in the major on a Bachelor of Science or Bachelor of Arts degree track starting in the fall. University Provost, Vice President for Academic Affairs and Chief Academic Affairs Officer Alan Sams, Ph.D, led the presentation to the board.

The journalism major returned after A&M stopped offering its then-55-year-old major in 2004 after it was consolidated into the communication department — a “victim of a budget reduction,” Sams said.

“Journalism has drastically changed in the digital age, and there is a great need to bring it back,” Sams said. “Journalism never went away when we consolidated the program. Just the major was sunsetted as it was merged, but now we seek to bring it back in its own right.”

Sams said there is a need for journalism graduates in Texas, citing over 1,500 available journalism positions in Texas alone, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Sams said the number of jobs for journalists is expected to increase in the coming decade.

Sams also said graduates also work outside of the media industry, such as in corporate communication, public relations and as content creators for nonprofit organizations, marketing agencies and educational institutions.

“As journalism has continued to develop in the digital age, the information itself, as well as the technologies and functions, have all rapidly changed as well so that students need a multidisciplinary approach to their education,” Sams said.

Sams said A&M’s approach to a multidisciplinary program is what makes it unique, compared to other institutions.

“Through our extensive academic and

strategic partnerships, and our propensity for blending disciplines, [A&M] is strongly and uniquely positioned to provide students with such an education and a wide array of immersive professional experiences to make them uniquely competitive in the job market,” Sams said.

The B.S. track will require students to have a specialization by minoring in a sciences discipline, encouraging students to pursue studies in A&M’s Institute of Data Science or its world-renowned visualization program.

Sams said A&M also has a vast network of partners to help all journalism students complete their required internship for the program.

The B.A. track will allow students to take advantage of both science and humanities programs at A&M, Sams said.

“Through our partnerships with the Bush School of Government and Public Service, just as an example, in both Texas and Washington D.C., we are strongly positioned to prepare students for careers in government reporting, public policy and community development,” Sams said. “Our land grant institution status also provides us community and local networks to help address news and information deserts in rural areas.”

Now that the program has been approved, the department has secured funding for a director position.

Sams said the Department of Communication and Journalism has strong leadership under its experienced head, Hart Blanton, and has 45 full-time faculty members. There are four full-time journalism faculty and an additional seven faculty members teaching courses in both communication and journalism.

Additionally, eight new full-time hires have been approved for hiring over the next three years, with four being approved for this coming year, Sams said.

Upon hearing the news that the reinstatement of the degree was approved, journalism professor Tom Burton was excited but felt cautious since the program has yet to secure a director.

“I’m encouraged that the journalism degree has been approved by the board and that we can move forward with those plans,” Burton said. “It’s been a difficult couple of weeks for sure, as we had outside problems that we didn’t anticipate. The university said they’re backing this program, and we have to take them at their word for that and work as hard as we can to make it happen.”

By Jack Lee @Jackthebatt

In a release obtained by the Texas Tribune, the Texas A&M Board of Regents will hold a special meeting on the evening of July 30 to discuss, among other things, the confirmation of interim university President Mark Welsh III and a possible settlement with Kathleen McElroy.

While Welsh was tapped by the Chancellor’s office to lead the university after M. Katherine Banks’ resignation, he still must undergo an appointment vote by the board.

“The board appoints the university presidents,” The Texas A&M system bylaws state. “Prior to appointment, the chancellor makes recommendations for the position.”

On July 26, Welsh emailed all students, faculty and staff, where he affirmed his commitment to leading A&M through the myriad controversies the university is currently facing.

“Texas A&M has weathered many storms over its 147-year history, and we’ll weather this one,” Welsh wrote. “The quickest way to get past it is to walk side-by-side and recommit to showing the world what it means to be an Aggie. I’m looking forward to the journey.”

The release also contains an agenda item

concerning a vote to authorize negotiating a potential settlement with Kathleen McElroy. McElroy previously said she believed she faced discrimination during her hiring process.

“I feel damaged by this entire process,” McElroy said. “I’m being judged by race, maybe gender. And I don’t think other folks would face the same bars or challenges.”

Additionally, in a July 21 document, head of the Department of Communication and Journalism Hart Blanton said at least one administrator attributed the scrutiny McElroy’s offer received from the university to her race.

“The unusual level of scrutiny being given to the hiring of Dr. McElroy was acknowledged by one administrator to have been based, at least in part, on race,” Blanton said. “Regardless of the source of any such pressure, I understand it to be illegal for any employer — much less a public university — to subject a job candidate to stricter scrutiny due to her race or color.”

Blanton also said his signature was forged on the subsequent offer made to McElroy containing a one-year professor of practice contract instead of tenure upon arrival.

“I was shocked to learn an earlier draft of a job offer letter for Dr. McElroy was altered and sent to her without my advance knowledge,” Blanton said. “The altered draft retained my electronic signature but reduced the appointment from an earlier-discussed multiyear term to one.”

It is unclear which portions of the McElroy controversy will be addressed during the meeting or possible subsequent negotiations.

Texas A&M clinical assistant professor Joy Alonza, PharmD.

Photo courtesy of Texas A&M University Health Science Center

(Left to right) University President Michael K. Young, Chancellor John Sharp, Chairman of the Board of Regents Charles Schwartz, Doug Pitcock, Texas State Senator John Whitmire, CEO of Benchmark Hospitality Alex Cabanas and Board of Regents member Phil Adams pose before cutting the ribbon to signal the opening of the Texas A&M Hotel and Conference Center on Aug. 27, 2018.

Regents will meet to discuss new president, McElroy agreement

No path forward

By Nicholas Gutteridge @nico_gjc

Named as the sole finalist for president of Texas A&M on March 3, 2021, and confirmed by the Board of Regents on March 31 that same year, M. Katherine Banks — the engineering department dean at the time — replaced Interim President John Junkins, signing a fiveyear contract.

As dean, Banks’ initiatives garnered praise from the Board of Regents and Chancellor John Sharp, such as her push to enroll 25,000 engineering students by 2025, a plan which garnered criticism.

“Dr. Banks is going to do for the university what she has already done for engineering,” Sharp said in 2021. “She is going to be a great president.”

A sweeping overhaul, faced with backlash

One of Banks’ first initiatives was a comprehensive review of the university, resulting in a 133-page document detailing findings and recommendations, including increased centralization and “expanding the role of the President’s office,” realigning the various departments and more.

What followed was sweeping changes at A&M, starting with the combination of the College of Liberal Arts, College of Science and College of Geosciences into one: the College of Arts and Sciences.

A plan by her to reorganize the university libraries then removed the ability for librarians to gain tenure, a move that caused a “collective trauma,” according to a blog post by Alyson Vaaler, an assistant professor and business librarian at A&M. A restructuring of the A&M Qatar campus also stated faculty with specialties beyond engineering were no longer allowed to conduct research.

“These organizational changes were approved by President Banks in December, along with more than 40 other recommendations,” an Aug. 5, 2022 press release stated.

The Faculty Senate passed a resolution soon after criticizing Banks for demonstrating an “apparent lack of commitment to meaningful shared governance” in decisions affecting the lives of faculty members.

“Whereas the problem has been exacerbated by a lack of transparency, including the president waiting for 15 months after taking office to share her vision for the future of the university … ,” the document stated.

Chemistry professor Karen Wooley still wasn’t satisfied, however. In a Dec. 14, 2022, letter directed to Banks, she claimed many of the changes were “causing substantial disruptions and threatening the integrity of this prestigious and precious institution,” with the message spreading quickly throughout the university.

A day later, an elected group of professors and researchers who oversee research activity at A&M, the Council of Principal Investigators, distributed a poll to faculty,

with the results revealing that many felt the administration was “cultivating an environment of fear and intimidation.”

Additionally, it found that out of 237 faculty members, 89 percent supported Wooley’s letter.

Banks’ response came in a Jan. 2 memo with the creation of two advisory committees that met with her bi-weekly alongside “coffee with university leadership,” a monthly event where faculty and staff could speak with administration in an informal setting.

Student voices, university oversight

In the comprehensive review of the university, the consulting group warned of a “lack of oversight of student organizations and other student leadership activities,” as they claimed it would result in the loss of Aggie Core Values. Banks’ administration would follow up by integrating Fish Camp, the student organization that serves as an introduction to campus, into

the university in the 2021 fall semester.

That same year, the university denied Draggieland — a student-run drag show event on campus — a sponsorship, effectively locking the organization away from its funding and closing it off from the Rudder Theater Complex. Only through the combined efforts of multiple other organizations and a donation campaign was Draggieland able to perform.

On Feb. 11, 2022, Banks demanded The Battalion stop printing and gave the organization 24 hours to integrate with the university, with denial meaning the loss of vital resources, such as The Battalion’s office space in the Memorial Student Center and its faculty advisor. The demand was later rescinded following intense backlash.

Because all three decisions were made without consultation from student leaders, the Student Government Association called a special session on Feb. 21, where Banks

appeared to field questions from senators.

In the meeting, Banks stood by the decision to integrate Fish Camp, was unable to explain why Draggieland was denied and called the 24-hour ultimatum given to The Battalion a mistake, stating, “it shouldn’t have happened.”

“I would never attempt to limit the voice of students,” Banks said at the session.

The attempt to integrate The Battalion was part of one of Banks’ goals: establishing a journalism department. The same efforts later led to the botched hiring of Katherine McElroy and the allegations of forgery of a signature and discrimination in the hiring process.

Banks then resigned on Thursday, July 20, 2023, one day after the Faculty Senate questioned her and voted to create a fact-finding committee to investigate the failed hiring.

EARN CASH FOR CLOTHES

An overview of M. Katherine Banks’ time as president Ishika Samant -- THE BATTALION

New advisor to lead student media

By Spencer O’Daniel @SpencerODaniel2

Howdy, Texas A&M students and Aggie community!

Spencer O’Daniel here from the basement in the Memorial Student Center. It is my honor and privilege to introduce myself as the new student media adviser for The Battalion, Aggieland Yearbook and Maroon Life magazine through our student media program.

My journalism experience began in high school in a small classroom in Belle Plaine, Kansas, where I helped with a pregame, ingame commentary and post-game analysis for our high school basketball team. I got the opportunity to announce and commentate, combining my love for media with basketball, sports analysis, interviewing and working with athletes and coaches throughout the season. I caught the “bug” for journalism because I had an amazing high school adviser, Sherra Taylor, who pushed me in the classroom, behind the microphone and even in Honors English my senior year. I knew that I wanted to work with people, be around sports and learn more about journalism at the collegiate level.

My junior year in college, I decided to become a secondary education journalism teacher. At first, Wichita State University, my alma mater, was even unsure of how to put a course schedule together for someone wanting to teach journalism at the high school level. For many high schools, student media classes are often taught by English-focused teachers, art and design teachers, or even added to the plate of teachers needing a filler class. For me, I knew I wanted to advise student media of all types and show students how to tell meaningful stories for their community, work with sources in a caring manner, create eye-popping visuals and designs. In addition, showing them how high school journalism can build their resume, soft skills, experiences and people skills in ways that could benefit them beyond a high school journalism classroom. For the past 11 years, I have gotten the opportunity to advise at three different institutions at both the high school and college level. From building award-winning programs from scratch in highly impoverished areas to con-

tinuing excellence in our publications at Kansas State University, all my experiences as an educator, journalist, creator and First Amendment advocate have prepared me to lead this student media program at the largest Division I school in the country. Our campus in College Station is incredibly fortunate to have a nationally award-winning student media program with rich tradition, core journalistic values that have stayed intact through several decades and hundreds of former student journalists and alumni who are highly engaged, connected, and supportive of the meaningful stories our journalists tell on a daily basis.

While coverage of Texas A&M — and notably our journalism program — has dominated the headlines at the state and national level recently, I have been incredibly impressed at what our student journalists have achieved without a journalism major, official journalism building and a leader for our academic program to build a 21st century, multimedia journalism program for our campus community. If you stepped into our newsroom on a deadline night or were a fly in our Slack channel during a breaking news conversation, you

would have no idea at the lack of resources, professional services and academic opportunities unavailable at this time to the students who care about creating strong publications, meaningful stories and keeping our readers in touch with what’s happening throughout the A&M campus. They are tenacious, dedicated and simply make no excuses. They genuinely care about their key role of curating impactful content that our students and community need to know about.

Students — if you are looking for a meaningful way to contribute to the Texas A&M community and an experience to build your resume, learn professional skills that transfer to any major or field and want to feel a part of a community that really embraces how important their role is, stop by our newsroom in L400 in Memorial Student Union and drop by my office. I would love the chance to meet new students from different majors and interests around campus and have a conversation (and even coffee if you are up for it!) on how you could contribute to our student media department with your unique set of skills, personality and experiences you bring

to the table.

Journalism is never dying; just evolving in a multimedia fashion that at times is hard to put your finger on. I embrace my new role of building future leaders of newsrooms, helping students discover new skills that can translate to their professional lives and building new relationships around our College Station campus with student media supporters, alumni, staff, faculty, administration and those who believe in the power of the First Amendment and the critical role of a thriving student media program on a college campus.

Spencer O’Daniel takes over after a 10-month gap between advisers for student publications at Texas A&M

Spencer O’Daniel stands for a photo in his office on Friday, June 28, 2023

Photo by Ishika Samant

We have work to do.

Ruben Hernandez Editor-in-Chief

We thought it couldn’t get any worse.

At first, it was frightening to be a student in such a period of instability within our communication and journalism department. Now, it’s evolved into a system-wide fallout that’s garnered national attention, which has been nothing but an embarrassment to our university.

Political overreach leads to a lack of intellectual diversity, inevitably damaging the curriculum and research done at the university. Students will not attend a college where they do not have the ability to learn any subject, irrespective of the matter, the same way faculty will not tenure at a university with a barricade around “touchy subjects.” Texas A&M University leaders should be chosen through merit alone — not back-room political dealing.

How much more shame will university leaders subject Aggies around the world to? This board believes that A&M can get back on track, but before we can even think about building back, we need to repair the damage that has already been done.

First and foremost, to acting president Mark Welsh, we as students would like to express our support for you as president. You have been put in an unenviable position. Still, we believe that your service not just to A&M as Dean of the George Bush School of Government and Public Service but to our nation and the United States Air Force, as well as your personal connection to A&M, makes you uniquely qualified to lead the university through this troubled time.

To begin rebuilding trust between the administration and the rest of campus, we ask that on behalf of A&M, you take the time to repair the currently broken relationship with Kathleen McElroy. Not only is this essential for journalism at Texas A&M to succeed but as long as the relationship with McElroy remains damaged, this university’s ability to make quality hires is diminished. This university, her alma mater, caused her both ca-

reer and personal distress. If this is how Aggies treat their own, what hope do we have of attracting other qualified candidates?

We ask that apologies be made, either by or on behalf of those responsible for the events that led to her rejecting the illegitimate offer given to her. Furthermore, we ask that the university does whatever is necessary to restore her as the head of the Department of Journalism. The need for well-trained Texas journalists has never been more clear than it is right now, it is up to A&M to help educate them.

During this time of great turmoil for faculty and students, we call upon the Vice President of Faculty Affairs, N.K. Anand, to lead the faculty with dignity and respect. More than ever, the concerns of the faculty matter. Unfortunately, they have been met with either dismissal or demands to resign. This conduct is not only unprofessional, but it degrades the already damaged reputation of our university. The administration needs to take feedback as valid concerns rather than inconveniences.

Finally, we call on Chancellor John Sharp to emphatically affirm, through action, that outside political influence has no place in any of the A&M system’s universities. In addition to McElroy’s situation, the suspension of Professor Joy Alonzo, allegedly ordered by the Lieutenant Governor, greatly troubles us. We are glad to hear the investigation of Alonzo has concluded with no terminations made and all parties satisfied, and we call on you to make sure cases such as Alonzo’s and McElroy’s do not happen again.

It is this board’s strong belief that A&M is a world-class institution, but the behavior and attitudes of certain current and former leaders show that it won’t remain that way unless imminent action is taken. As long as university leaders continue to put the demands of outside political actors above the well-being of our campus community, this embarrassing and destructive downward trend will continue.

Ishika Samant Managing Editor Robert O’Brien Senior Staff

Manager