Kineño Remembers: From the King Ranch to the White House

8. Back to Texas

C H A P T E R 8 3 Back to Texas In 1979 Dr. Maurice Cecil Mackey resigned as president of Texas Tech University and the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, and the board of regents launched a nationwide search for his replacement. Peggy and I were spending a week on Nantucket when I received word of Mackey’s resignation and the presidential search. I asked Peggy if I should try for the job as president of Texas Tech. It would be a great job, it was a fine school, and it had significant resources that could be used to enhance programs. I also knew that the medical school was struggling and had once been on probation. Peggy said it was my decision. I had done an excellent job at Tufts, she said, since I had managed to launch a capital campaign to build a new library and teaching building and had already raised enough money to buy the land, with some funds left over for endowment. The academic programs were strong, she added, but she knew the veterinary school continued to be a problem to me. She was of the opinion that, after my eight years as acting dean and dean, it might be a good time to leave. Peggy also knew that Tech meant a lot to me. I had two degrees from Tech, and two of my brothers had graduated from there.Three of our children—Lisa, Victoria, and Rob—were going to school at Tech. It was also where I met Peggy. I had always been proud of my Tech degrees ,andtheeducationIreceivedtheremademecompetitiveinscience and academics. My only real concern was moving the children from New England to West Texas. So a week later, in Concord, Peggy and I sat down to decide whether or not I should apply for the Tech job. We talked about the job for quite a while, focusing on the impact the move would have on our family.Then, together, we did an analysis of our situation , listing the positives and negatives. We determined there were more pros than cons. The next day I sent theTech search committee my curriculum vitae and credentials and I called Jean Mayer, telling him I was looking at the Tech job. I didn’t want him to read about it in the newspaper or hear it as a rumor. A few weeks later, I received a call from Freda Pierce, the secretary to the board of regents. She said she was calling to let me know that the presidential search committee wanted to have an interview with me at a meeting being held at the Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport (DFW). Two weeks later, I flew to DFW and met with members of the search committee.The committee was large and included several members of the board of regents as well as faculty, student, and community representatives. They asked probing questions about my academic and administrative experience. It was in my favor that I had a thorough knowledge about medical education, possessed an excellent record in teaching and research, and was a Tech graduate. I returned home and told Peggy I thought the interview had gone well and that I had a feeling I was still a candidate for the job. A month later, Peggy and I were both asked to travel to DFW for another interview.This time I met with the search committee and all of the members of the board of regents. Peggy was not with me in the room because she had been asked to meet with the spouses of the board members. When Peggy found out she had a meeting with the spouses, she was not pleased by the idea of being screened by a selection committee. Peggy said she would make it clear she was not much for teas and coffees and that the most important thing on her agenda was her family. My interview by the presidential selection committee and Peggy’s 178 C H A P T E R 8 with the committee of spouses must have gone well because several weeks after the second interview at the airport, Freda Pierce called again.The board was inviting me to theTech campus as one of the presidential finalists. I thanked her for the good news, and then she asked that I keep the news about the meeting confidential because the board wanted my visit...