A&M Regents Authorize Tarleton to Pursue PhD in Animal and Natural Resource Sciences, Approve Tenure

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Dear Colleagues,

After a long summer it’s exciting to see everyone on campus. From Family Weekend to Homecoming, the university has so much in store. Texan spirit is alive and well!

Thanks to your tireless efforts, I firmly believe this will be our greatest semester, and the A&M University System Board of Regents shares this assessment. At every meeting the regents applaud our unshakable commitment to transformative education. Today was no exception.

The regents will allow us to seek approval from the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board for a PhD in animal and natural resource sciences — the first doctoral program for the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources and the fourth for our institution. Tarleton’s doctorate of educational leadership, an EdD, launched in 1998; a PhD in criminal justice began in 2019; and a PhD in counseling is slated for 2023.

A 60-hour offering, the new PhD will prepare innovative leaders and cutting-edge researchers to help feed and clothe the world’s growing population. This is a huge win. Animal and natural resource scientists will drive the multidisciplinary program, the only one of its kind in Texas.

In other business, the regents approved negotiations for four properties near our main campus to expand our footprint and meet current and future growth.

They granted authorization to establish a quasi-endowment to provide scholarships for Texan Corps of Cadets members enrolled in the College of Liberal and Fine Arts. Investing these dollars in the A&M System Endowment Fund will sustain scholarships for years into the future. Initial funding will come from a portion of the sale of the Col. Charles Leigon property deeded to Tarleton in 2016.

I also am pleased to announce that the regents approved tenure for five faculty members:

  • Dr. Julie Howell, Assistant Professor of Educational Leadership and Technology, College of Education
  • Dr. Rafael Landaeta, Dean, Mayfield College of Engineering
  • Dr. Ramona Ann Parker, Associate Vice President and Executive Dean, College of Health Sciences
  • Dr. Doug Simon, Dean, Leadership and Military College
  • Dr. Kathleen Williamson, Dean, School of Nursing
Dr. James Hurley and Demetrius Harrell Jr.

And it was an honor to meet our new Texas A&M University System student regent, Marine veteran Demetrius Harrell Jr., a criminal justice major at A&M-Commerce. I truly appreciate his service to our country and dedication to the best university system in the nation.

I wish you all the best as we begin a new semester committed to excellence, integrity and respect. Thank you for allowing me to work beside you as we build a world-class, first-choice institution where students embrace their dreams and reach for the stars.

Forever bleed purple!