Blinn College responds to KBTX investigation, calls reporting ‘false and misleading’

BRENHAM, Texas (KBTX) - Months after KBTX began asking Blinn College for comment about its investigation into the hiring and eventual ouster of a senior administrator, Blinn responded just before 5 p.m. Friday with a statement declaring it “time to set the record straight.”

In a nearly two-page response also sent to faculty and staff, Blinn College’s Board of Trustees and Chancellor Mary Hensley responded to nearly three months of KBTX’s reporting, defending the college’s handling of a former administrator’s criminal history and calling KBTX’s months-long investigation “false and misleading.”

In November, KBTX first reported that Marie Kirby, Blinn’s former Vice Chancellor for Human Resources and Title IX, left her position days after the station asked Blinn about her 1990s criminal charges involving the sexual assault of a child.

“Let us be unequivocal from the start: The current administration had no knowledge of Marie Kirby’s criminal history until Friday, November 14, 2025,” Blinn’s Friday statement reads. “Upon receiving that information, Chancellor Mary Hensley took swift and decisive action. Any reports to the contrary are false and misleading at best, and defamatory at worst.”

The college’s statement directly contradicts accounts from its former General Counsel, Mel Waxler, who told KBTX in February that “the school did know” about Kirby’s background years before her 2020 promotion to vice chancellor.

Blinn’s account of events

In the joint statement, Board Chair Allison Bentke and Chancellor Hensley provide a detailed timeline of Kirby’s criminal history and her employment at Blinn.

Kirby was charged with sexual assault of a child in 1997-1998 while working at College Station ISD. She pleaded no contest to burglary of a building, served eight years of deferred adjudication, was required to attend sex offender counseling, and had her lifetime teaching license revoked. The court discharged her from community supervision in 2007. Kirby has told KBTX that she accepted the plea deal to avoid expense and embarrassment for her family.

Blinn’s statement says Kirby “purposefully omitted” information about her prior employment in public schools when she applied for a human resources position at Blinn in June 2008.

Blinn says that on Nov. 14, 2025—the same day KBTX sent its inquiry—Hensley “immediately initiated a review of the matter.” On Nov. 19, the college suspended Kirby’s access to technology systems and demanded her resignation. Kirby resigned the next day.

Open records provided to KBTX by Blinn College show administrators struggled to fully deactivate Kirby’s accounts until early December.

Former Blinn counsel reacts

The college’s statement acknowledges that Kirby submitted a letter the day before her resignation claiming she spoke to Waxler “in 2016-2017” about her “background.”

KBTX released a full copy of that memo, which was provided as part of an open records request from Blinn College, on February 5.

Blinn’s statement describes Kirby’s letter as “self-serving” and “remarkably devoid of any details,” noting it does not specify what she told Waxler about the sexual assault charges or other facts regarding her criminal prosecution.

The statement then states that in spring 2017, Blinn Police Chief John Chancellor received a report about Kirby’s criminal history and brought it to Waxler, who then met with Kirby.

“After receiving these details, Waxler met with Kirby. During that meeting, Waxler unilaterally and arbitrarily chose to take no action,” Blinn’s statement reads. “In addition to failing to inform anyone else in college leadership about the matter, he actively instructed Marie Kirby not to speak of it with the Chancellor.”

The college’s statement Friday says that because “Waxler kept no records relating to this matter nine years ago, Blinn is unable to assess the depth of his review or how he reached a conclusion about Kirby’s continued employment.”

The statement continues: “To put it simply: In spite of this information being reported to the College’s chief legal officer, Waxler failed to act.”

In a February interview with KBTX, Waxler said the college “did not find cause to pursue the matter” after reviewing Kirby’s history in 2016. He confirmed that “the school did know” about Kirby’s background.

KBTX, based on interviews with Waxler and Kirby, previously reported their interaction occurred in 2016. A Thursday statement from the office of State Sen. Lois Kolkhorst echoed that timeline, citing research by Texas Senate staff and media reports.

Blinn addresses Title IX processes

The statement also addresses questions about Kirby’s role in Title IX investigations, saying KBTX has “insisted upon making repeated inferences to Kirby’s possible involvement in student Title IX matters.”

“This reflects a misunderstanding of the College’s Title IX processes,” the statement reads. “At no point have their media reports or the College’s review of its Title IX processes demonstrated that Kirby ever had direct involvement in student Title IX investigations.”

Blinn’s documents from the 2024-2025 school year listed Kirby as the college’s “Title IX Coordinator for Faculty and Staff.” As Vice Chancellor, all of the college’s Title IX team reported to Kirby, including the Dean of Title IX and Student Conduct and two investigators.

Internal memos released through open records requests describe Kirby’s responsibilities, including:

• A “substantial role in the College’s Title IX compliance efforts, including providing supervision of personnel who handle Title IX complaints and serving as a decision-maker for sexual harassment and sexual violence complaints under Board Policy DIAA”
• Evaluating charges that a student might bring against a faculty member
• Serving as the College’s Equal Employment Opportunity officer
• Managing policies, procedures, and investigations relating to sexual harassment and sexual violence

KBTX’s investigation timeline

KBTX began investigating Kirby’s employment in November 2025 after learning about her criminal history. The station’s reporting has included:

November 2025: KBTX reported that Kirby left her position days after the station asked about her 1997 charges. Court records showed she was charged with sexually assaulting a 15-year-old male student while working as a teacher at Desert Hills, a now-defunct facility for troubled youth in College Station ISD. She pleaded no contest to burglary of a building to commit sexual assault in 1998, and two felony charges of sexual assault of a child were waived.

November 2025: Blinn announced it was reviewing both its Title IX procedures and pre-employment processes following KBTX’s inquiry. The college confirmed that it began investigating Kirby’s background on Nov. 14 and requested her resignation on Nov. 19.

February 2026: KBTX obtained internal memos and communications through open records requests. Kirby’s Nov. 19 email stated that “upper administration was fully informed of [her] background” after an anonymous tip in 2016. Former General Counsel Waxler confirmed to KBTX that he recalled the 2016 internal review and that “the school did know.”

February 2026: State Senator Charles Schwertner, who represents the Bryan area and serves on the committee that oversees Blinn’s funding, issued a statement saying the matter “will not go unnoticed by the State Legislature.”

February 2026: The Blinn College Board of Trustees held a special closed-door meeting. Board members did not speak to the media after the meeting.

College declines interview requests

Since Nov. 14, KBTX has repeatedly requested interviews with Blinn officials, including Chancellor Hensley. None have been granted.

The college’s statement on Friday concludes: “While the College has declined to speak about personnel matters on camera, we have consistently made ourselves available to answer any questions.”

Open records from Blinn College provided to KBTX show that senior administrators, on multiple occasions, discussed with attorneys how much information they were obligated to provide to the media and which questions did or did not require a response.

The statement adds, “Please know that the Blinn College District Board of Trustees and College leadership are unified. We will not allow continued false allegations to distract us from our educational mission.”