Prairie View A&M names sole finalist to lead the school

A sole finalist has been named to become Prairie View A&M University’s next president after a nationwide search.

On Thursday, the Texas A&M University System’s Board of Regents named Tomikia P. LeGrande as their choice for the historically Black school’s ninth leader.

“PVAMU has a strong legacy of transforming the lives of its students and contributing to the surrounding region and state of Texas, both educationally and economically,” LeGrande said in a statement. “I look forward to working with the faculty, staff, and community.”

LeGrande is currently vice president for strategy, enrollment management and student success at the Virginia Commonwealth University. She won’t assume her duties at Prairie View A&M until the end of the current academic year.

President Ruth Simmons, who has led the school for about five years, announced her plans to step down in March, launching the system’s search for her successor.

Simmons is set to be honored as President Emerita and will continue serving the university as a professor.

Texas A&M System Chancellor John Sharp said in a statement that the experience LeGrande brings from her current role “is exactly what PVAMU needs at this juncture to build on the great work Ruth Simmons has provided.”

Under state law, the board must wait at least 21 days after naming a finalist before it can appoint LeGrande at its next meeting.

LeGrande/ is no stranger to Texas. She previously served as an administrator for student affairs and enrollment management at the University of Houston-Downtown from 2012 to 2018.

LeGrande earned a doctorate in higher education administration from Texas Tech University. She received her bachelor’s in chemistry from Savannah State University and a master’s in the same subject from North Carolina A&T State University.

Before working at the Houston university, she worked at North Carolina A&T State and Winston-Salem State University.