Fort Worth’s Texas Wesleyan makes school history with newly hired president

Micah Pearce
·2 min read

A vice president at Jacksonville State University in Alabama has been named president of Texas Wesleyan University, the school announced Wednesday.

Emily Messer will be the first female president of the school. She had been the vice president for enrollment management at Jacksonville State since 2018.

“We were very fortunate to have many qualified applicants who expressed an interest in leading our University,” said Glenn Lewis, the chair of the Board of Trustees, in a statement. “After carefully reviewing all options, we concluded that Dr. Messer stood out as the person we felt was best suited to lead Texas Wesleyan University into the future.”

Messer starts July 1. She will succeed Frederick G. Slabach, who spent 12 years at Texas Wesleyan before he resigned to become the dean of the University of Mississippi Law School.

“As Texas Wesleyan’s next president, I am committed to advancing the mission of the university,” said Messer. “I would like to thank the Board of Trustees, faculty, staff and students for the opportunity to lead this exceptional university into its next chapter.”

Messer was also the the vice president of enrollment management, assistant dean of students and director of student life at Shorter University in Rome, Georgia.

Enrollment at Texas Wesleyan reached 2,653 in 2022, the largest since 2012. Under Slabach’s leadership, more than $50 million was invested into the campus.

“We are excited to welcome Dr. Emily Messer as the next President of the University,” said Vickie Stevens, the vice chair of the board of trustees. “Dr. Messer has the skills to build upon the success of President Slabach with her talent and vision, and we look forward to the future of Texas Wesleyan University under her leadership.”

Messer attended the University of Alabama, where she earned a Doctorate of Education in Higher Education Administration. She also holds two degrees from JSU — a Bachelor of Arts in English and a Master of Public Administration.