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Texas A&M announces its next dean of the college of architecture and three finalists for vice president of student affairs (VPSA). The new dean comes from the University of Florida. Dr. Lingqian (Ivy) Hu currently serves as chair of the Department of Urban and Regional Planning and associate director of Florida’s school of landscape architecture and planning. She starts at A&M July 1. The VPSA finalists includes two who have worked in the division and have degrees from A&M. They are the president at the College of Southern Nevada Bill Kibler and Texas State’s v-p of student success Cynthia Hernandez. The third finalist is the University of British Columbia vice president of students Ainsley Carry. Each of the finalists will be on campus to meet with students and employees and be interviewed by the university’s executive leadership team, student leaders, and the division’s leadership and staff. Click HERE to be directed to the A&M website with additional information about the VPSA finalists, their resumes, and when they will visit the A&M campus. Texas A&M news release on the naming of the new dean of the college of architecture: Texas A&M University is pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Lingqian (Ivy) Hu as the next dean of the College of Architecture, effective July 1, 2025. Dr. Hu currently serves as chair of the Department of Urban and Regional Planning and associate director of the School of Landscape Architecture and Planning at the University of Florida’s College of Design, Construction and Planning. She joined UF in 2022 as a professor in Urban and Regional Planning and brings with her a distinguished career in research, teaching and academic leadership. An expert in the intersection of transportation and land use, Hu’s research has significantly advanced the understanding of how planning and policy can promote economic prosperity, environmental sustainability and public health. She has authored more than 40 peer-reviewed articles in leading urban planning and transportation journals and has served as principal investigator or co-principal investigator on research projects totaling over $5.2 million in funding, supported by the National Science Foundation and other major agencies. Hu serves as co-editor-in-chief of the Journal of Planning Education and Research and associate editor of Transportation Research Part D. Prior to her tenure at the University of Florida, she held the position of professor and chair of the Urban Planning Department at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Hu holds a Ph.D. in Policy, Planning and Development and a master’s in planning from the University of Southern California, as well as a bachelor’s degree in planning from Nanjing University. She also brings valuable practical experience from her previous roles as a planner with the Southern California Association of Governments and the China Academy of Urban Planning and Design. Texas A&M University welcomes Hu to the Aggie community and congratulates her on her appointment. Her visionary leadership and commitment to excellence are poised to elevate the College of Architecture during a time of tremendous opportunity and growth.

A third Bryan man admits to multiple counts of drug possession that took place in April of 2023 following the search of a home by the Bryan police department’s tactical response team. Last Friday (April 11) in Brazos County district court, 30 year old Kelvin Blue Jr. was sentenced to 10 years in prison. In October 2024, 29 year old Ayrian Brown was sentenced to 20 years. Blue and Brown were convicted of what Bryan police arrest reports showed were having eight ounces of methamphetamine, almost eight ounces of cocaine, and nine ounces of marijuana. Blue also admitted to evidence tampering, for what Bryan police arrest reports say was flushing more drugs in a toilet. The arrest reports also say during a search of Blue’s home, officers seized almost $3,200 dollars from selling drugs. When Brown was sentenced, prosecutors dismissed charges in a separate case from June of 2020 of murder, unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon, and evidence tampering. The third man, 26 year old Anttavon Benford, admitted in October 2024 to having a misdemeanor amount of marijuana. Online court records show prosecution was barred.

The federal government has pulled its financial support of the proposed bullet train between Houston and Dallas with a stop east of Bryan/College Station. A news release from the U.S. department of transportation says the project cost is now believed to be over $40 billion dollars, making construction unrealistic and a risky venture for taxpayers. Not giving Amtrak almost $64 million dollars for the Texas Central Railway project, according to the news release, allows Amtrak to focus on necessary improvements on current routes. The news release quotes that the federal transportation secretary and Amtrak are in agreement that “underwriting this project is a waste of taxpayer funds and a distraction from Amtrak’s core mission of improving its existing subpar services.” Transportation secretary Sean Duffy said “if the private sector believes this project is feasible, they should carry the pre-construction work forward, rather than relying on Amtrak and the American taxpayer to bail them out.”