COLLEGE STATION, TEXAS – Texas A&M University announced that Audrey McElroy, PhD, became the permanent head of the College of Agriculture and Life Science’s poultry science department on Nov. 1 after serving in an interim role.

McElroy, who’s worked in various roles at Texas A&M since 2014, shared her enthusiasm for taking over this position.

“We already have a strong legacy and reputation, but I want this to be the best poultry science department in the country,” McElroy said. “Every decision I have made since taking the interim position has been rooted in creating opportunities for faculty, staff and student success, because their successes build upon each other. I look forward to creating more opportunities in service of our collective research, education and outreach missions.”

McElroy added that the department is well-aligned among other national poultry programs but positioning it as the worldwide leader in poultry science research, education and outreach will take effort and investment.

In taking the permanent role, McElroy also named her primary goals as offering a productive environment for faculty, staff and students. She pointed to stakeholder commitment, particularly with partnerships in the poultry industry, state and federal policymakers and agencies, along with commodity and professional groups.

Jeff Savell, PhD, vice chancellor of Texas A&M AgriLife and dean of Agriculture and Life Sciences, praised the promotion of McElroy and shared how valuable McElroy has been to the department.

“Dr. McElroy is the right leader at the right time,” he said. “Her career has been spent mentoring students, conducting cutting-edge research, and helping the poultry industry solve critical issues through her extension efforts. The outstanding leadership that Dr. McElroy demonstrated during her time serving as the interim head of the department was such a great indicator of her commitment to Texas A&M University and the Department of Poultry Science.”

Texas A&M shared that as interim head, McElroy led recruitment efforts and facility improvement projects that led to almost $6 million in donations from individual and corporate donors for department initiatives and infrastructure.

“I believe having the right facilities and people goes hand in hand when it comes to our ability to be the leading poultry science program,” she said. “Recruiting faculty is critical for us to increase our impact for stakeholders and our ability to grow both our undergraduate and graduate student numbers. And I think improvements to our infrastructure on campus, our research labs as well as our research facilities at the poultry research farm, are incredibly important in service of both.”

Before College Station, McElroy served as a professor at Virginia Tech doing research, teaching and extension work for 15 years. She received her Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in poultry science and her doctorate in poultry physiology from Texas A&M.