Elsa Murano

Elsa Murano was named the twenty-third president of Texas A&M University, the first Hispanic and the first woman to hold the position, in 2008. She had previously served as a professor in the schools Department of Animal Science, as well as director of the Center for Food Safety in its Institute of Food Science and Engineering. President Bush appointed Murano under secretary of agriculture for food safety at the U.S. Department of Agriculture, a position which she held from 2001 to 2004. During her tenure, she oversaw the third-largest beef recall in U.S. history and reformed the USDA Food Safety Inspection Service. Updated 2009