Members of the Texas A&M faculty senate are told that a “rogue e-mail” led to the suspension of an A&M professor after giving a lecture at the University of Texas medical branch in Galveston (UTMB) earlier this year.
The two week suspension of Joy Alonzo came after A&M officials were told UTMB had censured her.
Faculty senate member Trevor Hale, who is president of the Texas council of faculty senates, learned that UTMB does not have a censure policy.
Hale said they don’t know the source of what he called a rogue e-mail. Hale said “It was a large class. There was an announcement in Blackboard” (a technology app used in education). “The Texas Tribune picked it up because it looked very official with formal censure in big block letters.”
Hale also said “There is no policy, tribunal, committee, for anything from formal censure from UTMB in any way, shape, or form. Somebody went rogue. We responded to it. More story to come out.”
Additionally, A&M faculty senate speaker Tracy Hammond said the UTMB faculty senate president told her that UTMB does not have a faculty censure policy.
Hammond provided to WTAW News, letters from UTMB that were sent to the A&M faculty senate.
The suspension was lifted following an A&M investigation, something that was supported earlier this month by lawyers with the A&M system.
Click below to hear comments from Trevor Hale during the August 14, 2023 Texas A&M faculty senate meeting.