COLLEGE STATION, Texas — Following news that broke on Tuesday that Dr. Joy Alonzo had been suspended and placed on administrative leave following a lecture that she gave at the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston, a letter has been released by Faculty Senate Speaker Tracy Hammond addressing the matter and a meeting with acting president Gen. Mark Walsh has been scheduled.
The letter can be found below:
Dear Senators,
The Executive Committee of the Faculty Senate spoke to the Chancellor at length yesterday. It was clear that Chancellor Sharp understands the gravitas of this situation. Additionally, he stated that he wants all of the facts to come out.
We believe the administrative leave of Professor Alonzo occurred before relevant facts of the situation could be ascertained. Such action gave the appearance that an accusation from a student or other individuals would assume that the faculty member was guilty and would be reprimanded immediately, and that the faculty member would need to be proven innocent before reprimands could be undone and the faculty member exonerated. We believe that actions against her, including the censure of comments of Dr. Alonzo by UTMB, were a clear violation of academic freedom and speech.
We have additional concerns about the relevant processes and how they are handled. The Executive Committee will be talking to Acting President Welsh about these issues on August 7, 2023, as well as freedom of speech issues that faculty are struggling with currently. We need to ensure that our faculty are protected and that they feel supported by the university. For those who have asked, Acting President Welsh is also scheduled to speak to the full Faculty Senate on August 14.
There were clearly problems with the past processes in this situation. We will continue to find out what happened regarding the administrative leave of Professor Alonzo. We will also work closely with Texas A&M University administrators to alter any policies to ensure academic freedom for faculty, as well as look at any policies that might need to exist to ensure that faculty receive adequate due processes prior to any university action as serious as suspension.
During our conversation, the Chancellor emphasized his continued commitment to academic freedom and is supportive of our efforts to work with the university to make sure this never happens again. We look forward to speaking with the Chancellor at a full Faculty Senate meeting in the future.
The report that originally came from The Texas Tribune stated that after Dr. Alonzo had given a lecture, a student reported her for criticizing Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick. Alonzo was later temporarily suspended and "formally censured". An investigation was also launched. However, she has since returned to her full duties following the investigation, which concluded and cleared her of any wrongdoing.
More criticism came towards Texas A&M administration when it was revealed that Chancellor Sharp had been in direct contact with Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick at the time of the suspension. However, in a statement to The Texas Tribune, Texas A&M University System spokesperson Laylan Copelin said Sharp’s text to Patrick was a “typical update,” and said it wasn't atypical for Sharp to “keep elected officials informed when something at Texas A&M might interest them.”
Alonzo is known as a well-respected professor with over two decades of experience in various locations around the world, and has taught college students in Texas for over a decade. She was even named the Texas A&M pharmacy school early career researcher of the year in 2022.
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