Hagler Institute For Advanced Study Selects Two External Advisory Board Members

The Hagler Institute for Advanced Study at Texas A&M University has added two members to its External Advisory Board: former U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison and Austin aviation attorney Michael Slack. 

The External Advisory Board annually reviews the activities of the Hagler Institute to provide guidance, advice and recommendations.

“I have had the pleasure of working with both of these extraordinary leaders for over two decades,” said Dr. John L. Junkins, founding director of the Hagler Institute. “It is my great honor to welcome the Honorable Kay Bailey Hutchinson and distinguished attorney Michael Slack to the Hagler Institute External Advisory Board.”

Hutchison is a former U.S. senator and NATO Ambassador with more than 50 years of experience as a public servant and businesswoman. Hutchison serves on NASA’s National Advisory Council and the Atlantic Council’s board of directors. She is a senior advisor for the Center for Strategic and International Studies and a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Hutchison previously served on Bank of America’s Global Advisory Board and is the former chairman of the board of visitors for the United States Military Academy at West Point. 

“Throughout her career, Kay Bailey Hutchinson has been a highly effective advocate for education and research, both nationally and in Texas,” Junkins said. “She is a visionary who was the driving force that led to the creation of the Texas Academy of Medicine, Engineering, Science and Technology, the premier state academy for academic excellence.”

Slack is a co-founder and managing partner of the law firm Slack Davis Sanger with more than 36 years of legal experience focused on aviation law and product liability cases against major corporations. He serves on the board of governors for the American Association for Justice. He is an associate fellow with the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics and certified by the National Board of Trial Advocacy and the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. Slack was honored with the Distinguished Aerospace Engineering Alumni Award in 2018 by Texas A&M and the Distinguished Aggie Lawyer Award in 2023 by the Texas Aggie Bar Association. Slack served as president of the Texas Trial Lawyers Association.  

“Michael Slack is among the most distinguished attorneys in the nation,” Junkins said. “His combination of aviation expertise as a pilot and an aerospace engineer, and his world class legal expertise has made truly remarkable impacts in aviation law. He is a highly successful trial lawyer who has greatly contributed to aviation safety. He has contributed greatly as a volunteer and leader to Texas A&M, the legal profession and to the nation.”