Prairie View A&M president leaving early due to 'limited presidential authority, Chancellor responds
HOUSTON - Prairie View A&M University President Ruth Simmons announced she is leaving her position early because of "limited presidential authority."
However, Dr. Simmons recently announced on Friday afternoon that she will be leaving the position earlier than expected at the end of February. She wrote, "No one is more surprised than I by this premature end to my tenure. Indeed, I had counted on working assiduously to assure the success of my successor by completing in full and as ably as I can my responsibilities as president. However, I was informed recently that I could only continue as president with limited presidential authority. My immediate response was that I could not and would not agree to being president in name only."
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PVAMU President Dr. Ruth Simmons initially announced she was stepping down from her position on March 11, 2022. She previously said in her announcement, "a new leader must assume responsibility for advancing the University to a new level of excellence in student outcomes, faculty achievement and research output."
Simmons has served as President for the HBCU since 2017 and says when she took the role she would be all in from the beginning until the end. " I cannot now become a leader accepting lowered expectations," she said in her announcement.
PRAIRIE VIEW, TX - November 7: A conversation with Elizabeth Alexander And Ruth J. Simmons at Prairie View A&M University on November 7, 2022. (Photo by Nicholas Hunt/Office of Marketing and Communications/Prairie View A&M University
The Texas A&M University System Chancellor John Sharp responded to Simmons’ resignation and said this,"
When Presidents in The Texas A&M University System announce they are leaving, they cannot hire senior staff or Deans except on an interim basis, so that the new President can choose the leadership team he or she will be working with during their term.
This decade-long policy applies to all of our Presidents.
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It should be noted that we afforded the same courtesy to Dr. Simmons when George Wright announced his retirement as President of Prairie View A&M University.
We simply believe new Presidents should be able to choose their top staff. As an example, Mike Young announced his retirement over a year before he left Texas A&M University, and he could not hire a Dean or top staff except on an interim basis. That allowed the new president, Kathy Banks, to fill those slots.
I informed Dr. Simmons that we will not make exceptions to this policy and she chose to resign. I am sorry she chose this path, but I am forever grateful for her service at Prairie View A&M University and look forward to even greater things in the future.
Dr. Tomikia LeGrande will assume her duties as President on June 1, as previously planned.