• Home  / 
• News Stories  / 
• Message Announcing Stacia Haynie as Sole Finalist for MSU Texas President

Message Announcing Stacia Haynie as Sole Finalist for MSU Texas President

June 20, 2023

Dear Midwestern State University family,

I hope this letter finds you well. As we look to the upcoming months and the fall semester, I write today to share exciting news regarding the future leadership of Midwestern State University.

After an extensively collaborative and thorough process led by the MSU Texas Presidential Search Committee, the Texas Tech University System Board of Regents and I are excited to announce we have unanimously chosen Dr. Stacia “Stacy” Haynie as the sole finalist for the presidency of MSU Texas.

The search – led by a committee of 11 representatives from MSU Texas, Wichita Falls, and the TTU System – yielded numerous exceptional candidates. As the process continued, Dr. Haynie’s tremendous history of leadership excellence in higher education, her passion for educating and advocating for students, faculty and staff, and her strong ties to the Wichita Falls area made her the clear choice for president.

While Dr. Haynie has dedicated the past 33 years to serving in various roles at Louisiana State University – including as Executive Vice President and Provost and Chief Academic Officer – she will tell you herself: coming to MSU Texas means coming home. She got her start in North Texas, working on her family’s farm in Clay County, graduating at the top of her high school class and then joining the MSU Texas family and earning her bachelor’s (theater) and master’s (political science) degrees.

While earning her doctorate in political science at the University of North Texas, Dr. Haynie served as an adjunct professor at MSU Texas before beginning her tenure at LSU. She arrived in Baton Rouge as an assistant professor and then climbed the ranks to associate professor before becoming a full professor in 2003. During her time in Louisiana, she has held numerous positions – most recently as the J. W. Annison, Jr. Family Alumni Professor of Political Science – including Department Chair, Associate and Interim Dean of the Graduate School, Dean of the College of Humanities and Social Sciences and Vice Provost for Academics and Planning.

At LSU, she has led initiatives that resulted in increased support for faculty and staff, and she has been recognized nationally for her development efforts, which significantly increased annual fundraising outcomes benefitting multiple academic units. As a decorated scholar and researcher in political science, she was instrumental in the creation of the National High Courts Database (supported by the National Science Foundation) and has an extensive publication history, including a forthcoming book of in-depth research on the high courts of six nations titled “Law, Litigants and Lawyers: Party Capability in a Comparative Perspective.”

Above all, she has remained dedicated to and passionate about the university’s most important constituents: its students. She has led the charge to improve and increase enrollment, foster a nurturing academic environment and expand opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students across the university. I am certain that dedication and passion will not only follow her to MSU Texas, but that it will continue to grow and ultimately impact the entire Mustangs family.

Dr. Haynie's outstanding achievements, combined with her visionary leadership, make her the ideal candidate to guide MSU Texas into a bright future. She cares deeply about the university and the Wichita Falls community, and I look forward to her innovative ideas that will surely inspire growth and foster a vibrant academic environment at MSU Texas for years to come.

As we near the completion of this process, state law requires that once a sole finalist has been named, 21 days must pass before final action can be taken on employment. We look forward to celebrating with all of you in Wichita Falls when the official appointment is made and sharing plans outlining a smooth and successful transition of leadership.

Please join me in congratulating Dr. Haynie and welcoming her and her husband Scott back to the North Texas region. We extend our best wishes for her leadership of MSU Texas.