Texas A&M names Mark A. Welsh III as interim president

The board of regents at Texas A&M University named Mark A. Welsh as the new interim president in a special-called meeting Sunday.

COLLEGE STATION, Texas (KIAH) -- The board of regents at Texas A&M University named Mark A. Welsh III as the new interim president in a special-called meeting Sunday.

Chancellor John Sharp previously named Welsh on July 21 as the acting president of the university. The board’s action was needed to place Welsh into a longer-term role to lead the university.

“I cannot think of a better person than Mark Welsh to lead Texas A&M right now,” Sharp said. “He has experience running a large organization, but he also is widely respected and universally well-liked in the Aggie community. General Welsh has earned a reputation as a smart, thoughtful and collaborative leader. We are lucky to have him in the president’s office.”

Welsh has been dean of the university’s Bush School of Government and Public Service since 2016, but his time in the academic realm came after a long and decorated career in the United States Air Force.

“I am grateful to the Board of Regents and Chancellor Sharp for their confidence in me to lead this great university during a time of transition,” Welsh said. “As interim president, my primary focus is to ensure our faculty and staff have the resources and support they need to continue their critically important work. I’m deeply committed to Texas A&M, our core values and traditions, and to an environment that values the voice of every member of our faculty, staff and student body. I pledge to every Aggie that I will work tirelessly to represent this great institution in a way that reflects your pride in it.”

Texas A&M's board of regents also voted to negotiate a potential settlement with Kathleen McElroy over her botched hiring.

McElroy was hired as a tenure-track journalism professor earlier this summer, but she wound up turning down the job when she was offered a less lucrative position after conservative groups expressed concern about her experience.

Former A&M President Katherine Banks resigned over the backlash.

Additionally, the regents directed the System’s Office of General Counsel to complete a thorough investigation as quickly as possible and emphasized that they support the release of its the findings to the public.