Michael R. "Mick" Ferrari, the former Texas Christian University chancellor, did not attend Pier 1 Imports annual meeting Tuesday as chairman of the board because he is undergoing cancer treatment and his doctors advised him against traveling to Fort Worth, CEO Alexander Smith told shareholders.
Ferrari, who led TCU from 1998 to 2003, participated in the otherwise uneventful meeting by telephone. He will remain on the board until a new proxy statement is sent to shareholders next year, the company said.At a board meeting afterward, Ferrari was replaced as chairman by Terry E. London, 62, a former CEO, president and chief financial officer of Gaylord Entertainment Co. He is currently president of London Broadcasting Co., which this year acquired KTDX, Channel 47 in Fort Worth. It also operates stations in Beaumont, Waco, Corpus Christi and Tyler.Ferrari, who also did not attend last year's meeting, did not address the state of his health. Smith told the meeting that the board chairman was "battling cancer with intense therapy."Moreover, Ferrari would not be standing for re-election as the board chairman.Ferrari became TCU's ninth chancellor after serving as president of Drake University. After his retirement from TCU, he created Ferrari & Associates, a consulting firm that carried out executive searches, executive coaching, board governance and dispute resolution.A graduate of Michigan State University, he was an associate professor of management at Kent State University in Kent, Ohio, before taking ranking administration positions at Bowling Green State University and Wright State University, also in Ohio.He retired from TCU in 2003, saying he and his wife wanted to spend more time close to family in the midwest.Ferrari, who led TCU from 1998 to 2003, participated in the otherwise uneventful meeting by telephone.Barry Shlachter, 817-390-7718Twitter: @startelegram