The executive vice president and chief executive officer of the Texas A&M Health Science Center (HSC) was unexpectedly let go Monday morning.
Dr. Brett Giroir told WTAW News said when he entered the room for a routine meeting with President Michael Young he “knew it was kinda bad news when I opened the door and there lawyers around the table.”
Giroir said he was given the option to resign or to be terminated within the next 30 minutes. After visiting with his wife, he submitted his resignation because “there was no reason to create more turmoil over what I think there is going to be more what I think will be somewhat tumultuous” situation.
Dr. Giroir noted the timing of the personnel action was the day after the end of the legislative session, where the HSC received $144 million in tuition revenue bonds for further expansion.
Young told Giroir he “was looking for someone to increase NIH research funding and be more interdisciplinary with the rest of the university.” Giroir told WTAW News “Of all the reasons, and there are probably many good ones that people may not want me, that would be the least of them”. Giroir cited a $3 billion dollar BARDA award and the $50 million NCTM facility, increasing HSC research in his first year by 65 percent and overall by 35 percent.
Giroir added “It’s a bit unsettling that the thing I’m very best at and think have succeeded at most is the reason that my services are no longer needed as part of the team”.
Click below for comments from Brett Giroir, visiting with WTAW’s Bill Oliver.
WTAW News has invited President Young to be interviewed and/or issue a statement.
According to a university spokesman, the President¹s memo (shown below) serves as his statement.
The university did release the following memo from the President.
Memo from Texas A&M President Michael Young:
I am pleased to announce that Paul E. Ogden, M.D., will assume the role of Interim Executive Vice President and Acting Chief Executive Officer for the Texas A&M Health Science Center, effective June 1, 2015. In his current role, Dr. Ogden serves as Interim Dean, College of Medicine and Interim Vice President for Clinical Affairs. He will continue to serve in this capacity while assuming his new leadership role. A search will be conducted to recruit a top leader for the Health Science Center.
Dr. Ogden is a member of the Texas A&M College of Medicine charter class and received his degree with honors in 1981. After completing his internship and internal medicine residency, Dr. Ogden went on to complete a faculty development fellowship at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill. He has served as a general internist and had been involved with medical education at Scott & White Memorial Hospital in Temple for more than 24 years. Dr. Ogden has been in full-time leadership positions at the Texas A&M Health Science Center College of Medicine since 2010 when he was named Vice Dean for Academic affairs and brought to fruition a multi-year programmatic expansion to double the student enrollment before being named Interim Dean in July 2013. He is board certified by the American Board of Internal Medicine. He is also a fellow of the American College of Physicians, a member of the American Medical Association and the Texas Medical Association.
I appreciate the service of Dr. Brett Giroir, who has resigned from his position as Executive Vice President and Chief Executive Officer for the Texas A&M Health Science Center. Dr. Giroir is an internationally renowned physician-scientist whose work has focused on life threatening infectious diseases. Dr. Giroir assumed leadership of the Texas A&M Health Science Center in October 2013. Prior to joining the Health Science Center, Dr. Giroir served as Vice Chancellor for Strategic Initiatives for the Texas A&M University System and Principal Investigator for the Texas A&M Center for Innovation in Advanced Development and Manufacturing, a public-private partnership with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services designed to enhance the nation’s emergency preparedness against emerging infectious diseases, including pandemic influenza, and chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear threats. From 2004 until 2008, Dr. Giroir served in the Federal Government as Deputy Director, then Director, of the Defense Sciences Office of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). Dr. Giroir is the recipient of the Secretary of Defense Medal for Outstanding Public Service, and the Texas A&M University System Excellence in Innovation Award in 2010.
