UT System Board of Regents appoints four to serve on UTIMCO Board

AUSTIN—The University of Texas System Board of Regents Wednesday appointed Regent James Conrad “Rad” Weaver, Vice Chairman R. Steven Hicks, Vice Chairman Jeffery Hildebrand, and Janet Handley to the Board of Directors of The University of Texas/Texas A&M Investment Management Co. (UTIMCO).

Weaver is the CEO of McCombs Partners. He is Chair Pro Tem of the Dallas Federal Reserve Board San Antonio and serves on several boards, including Cox Enterprises and the Circuit of the Americas.

Hicks owns and serves as the executive chairman of Capstar Partners, LLC, a private investment firm. Capstar Partners is the controlling shareholder in DMX, Inc., a company engaged in the provision of business media services, including video, music and scent technologies; Andrew Harper, a high-end travel publishing and services firm; and Harden Healthcare, a company engaged in the skilled nursing, home health and related fields. 

Hildebrand is the founder, chairman and chief executive officer of Hilcorp Energy Co., an independent oil and gas exploration and production company headquartered in Houston with operations throughout the nation. Hilcorp has been recognized multiple times by both regional and national publications as one of the top workplaces in America.

Weaver, Hicks and Hildebrand will each serve two-year terms on the UTIMCO board. UT regents serve two-year terms and non-UT regents serve three-year terms, according to the UTIMCO bylaws.

Handley, appointed to a three-year term, founded the Investment Office for the Texas A&M Foundation in 2001 and retired in her role as Vice President for Investments in Dec. 2016. She currently serves as a member of the Investment Committee for the Society of Petroleum Engineers.

Handley will succeed UT System Chancellor William H. McRaven who volunteered to give up his seat on the UTIMCO board so that the UT System Board of Regents could increase the presence of the Texas A&M System on the board.

During the meeting Wednesday, the UT System Board of Regents also authorized changing the legal name of the corporation from The University of Texas Investment Management Co. to The University of Texas/Texas A&M Investment Management Co.

UTIMCO is a 501(c)(3) investment management corporation whose sole purpose is the management of investment assets under the fiduciary care of the Board of Regents of The University of Texas System. Created in March 1996, UTIMCO is the first external investment corporation formed by a public university system in the nation.

The UTIMCO Board consists of nine (9) members. Seven (7) Directors are appointed by the Board of Regents of The University of Texas System, consisting of (i) three (3) members of the Board of Regents (“Regental Directors”), (ii) three (3) persons with substantial background and expertise in investments, and (iii) one other qualified individual. Two (2) Directors are appointed by the Board of Regents of The Texas A&M University System, at least one of whom must have a substantial background and expertise in investments.

About The University of Texas System
Educating students, providing care for patients, conducting groundbreaking basic, applied and clinical research, and serving the needs of Texans and the nation for more than 130 years, The University of Texas System is one of the largest public university systems in the United States. With 14 institutions and an enrollment of more than 228,000 students, the UT System confers more than one-third of the state’s undergraduate degrees, educates approximately two-thirds of the state’s health care professionals annually and accounts for almost 70 percent of all research funds awarded to public institutions in Texas. The UT System’s operating budget for FY 2017 is $17.9 billion, including $3 billion in sponsored programs funded by federal, state, local and private sources. With more than 20,000 faculty – including Nobel laureates and many members of the National Academies – and nearly 80,000 health care professionals, researchers, student advisors and support staff, the UT System is one of the largest employers in the state.