When Ken Colwell, dean of the UHV School of Business Administration, started looking for members to be on his Dean’s Advisory Board, he wanted a variety of perspectives representing diverse industries, backgrounds and ages.

Ken Colwell

Now, the board includes Crossroads business leaders who are taking proactive steps to help the business school fulfill its focus on community engagement. The members meet once a month as a board and once a month in subcommittees. The business school had an advisory board under the previous dean, but it had not met since 2017 and was based in Fort Bend County.

“I am grateful to have a new board made up of talented, knowledgeable individuals who have a passion for creating opportunities for the business school and its students to be more connected in the community,” Colwell said. “They have taken the initiative to seek out opportunities for our students in multiple areas. I am excited to see how their advice and efforts will impact the growth and development of the business school.”

Members of the UHV School of Business Administration Dean’s Advisory Board are:

• Brian Billingsley, vice president of Office Systems
• Waylan Brannan, owner of Brannan Paving
• Hunter Follett, CEO of Tejas Production Services
• Brooke Garcia, executive director of Victoria County United Way
• Joe Humphreys, director of the UHV Center for Regional Collaboration
• Claud Jacobs, partner at LodeStone Financial Services
• Donald Jirkovsky, president of Lighthouse Development Resources LLC
• Diane Kliem, president and attorney at Kliem & Associates
• Crystal Lindsey, digital marketing consultant at M. Roberts Media
• Teri Moten, owner of Moten Consulting Group
• Kyle Noack, CFO of KMH Wealth Management LLC and Keller and Associates CPAs PLLC
• Robert Royer, president of Building Brands Marketing and Consulting

Follett, who also serves as chair of the advisory board, joined the group because he shares a passion for creating bridges between young business people and the community. He previously worked with UHV President Bob Glenn to start the Victoria Young Professionals group, and he is looking forward to helping UHV business students find connections in the Crossroads.

Hunter Follett

“Victoria has more economic opportunities than anywhere I’ve ever been,” he said. “The business school is critical in helping local students develop their talents to participate in those opportunities and meet our community’s economic needs.”

As part of their role, board members advise the dean on initiatives for the school and make him aware of stakeholders and needs in the community that the business school could address. Board members also serve on three subcommittees focused on career services, personal growth and entrepreneurship.

One of the tools that the board is developing for students and the business community is learning opportunities based on experience. This includes internships, job shadowing, mentorships, case competitions and consulting projects that can be done by business classes, such as helping a company create a social media strategy.

“Through these areas, we hope we can help the business school continue to produce quality talent for the area to meet the needs of its students and the community,” Follett said. “We want business owners to reach out and participate in these initiatives and efforts.”