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.