Texas A&M announced that Dr. Elsa Murano, USDA Under Secretary for Food Safety, has been selected to become Vice Chancellor, Dean of Agriculture and Life Sciences, and the Director of the Texas A&M Agricultural Experimental Station.  Murano will take the place of Dr. Ed Hiler, who retired August 31.  He agreed to stay in the position until his successor was appointed.

President George W. Bush appointed Dr. Murano to her present position as Under Secretary for Food Safety in 2001.  Before that, she was a professor in the Department of Animal Science at Texas A&M.  She became part of the faculty at the University in 1995.  She also directed the Texas A&M Institute for Food Science and the Engineering Center for Food Safety from 1997 to 2001.