John Junkins
John L. Junkins | |
|---|---|
| Interim President of Texas A&M University | |
| In office January 1, 2021 – May 31, 2021 | |
| Preceded by | Michael K. Young |
| Succeeded by | M. Katherine Banks |
| Director of the Hagler Institute for Advanced Study | |
| Assumed office 2011 | |
| Preceded by | Office established |
| Personal details | |
| Born | May 23, 1943 |
| Spouse |
Elouise Click (m. 1965) |
| Children | 2 |
| Awards | See list |
| Scientific career | |
| Education | |
| Fields | |
| Institutions | |
| Thesis | On the Determination and Optimization of Powered Space Vehicle Trajectories Using Parametric Differential Correction Processes (1969) |
| Doctoral advisor | Samuel Herrick |
John L. Junkins (born May 23, 1943) is an American academic and a distinguished professor of aerospace engineering in the College of Engineering at Texas A&M University specializing in spacecraft navigation, guidance, dynamics, and control. He holds the Royce E. Wisenbaker Endowed Chair at Texas A&M University and also serves as the Founding Director of the Hagler Institute for Advanced Study at Texas A&M University, since its founding in December 2010. On November 24, 2020, Junkins was announced as the interim president of Texas A&M University starting January 2021. He was the interim president until May 31, 2021.
The Texas A&M University System Board of Regents on March 5, 2021, named M. Katherine Banks as the sole finalist to be president of Texas A&M University. On May 27, 2021, Junkins issued a farewell message welcoming his successor as the 26th President of Texas A&M University. After his term as interim president, he returned to his positions as Distinguished Professor in the College of Engineering and continues as the Director of the Hagler Institute for Advanced Study.