The six-member ERS Board of Trustees oversees investment of the retirement trust fund and the administration of state employee and retiree health insurance benefits, a deferred compensation plan, and a flexible benefits program.
Three board members are appointed, one each by the Governor, the Speaker of the House, and the Chief Justice of the Texas Supreme Court. Three are elected by ERS members and retirees. Both appointed and elected members serve staggered six-year terms with the terms of appointees expiring on August 31 of each even-numbered year and those of elected members on August 31 of each odd-number year.
View the calendar of upcoming board meetings.
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Mr. I. Craig Hester
Chair
P.O. Box 13207
Austin, TX 78711
Term Expires: 8/31/2010
Appointed by Texas Supreme
Court Chief Justice
Wallace Jefferson
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I. Craig Hester was appointed by Texas Supreme Court Chief Justice Wallace B. Jefferson in 2005 after serving 13 years on the Investment Advisory Committee.
Mr. Hester has been actively involved in professional investment management since 1972. Prior to founding Hester Capital Management, L.L.C. in 1989, Mr. Hester served as Director of Regional Asset Management for InterFirst Investment Management (1983-89); Chief Investment Officer of the Texas Municipal Retirement System (1979-1983); Assistant Vice President & Trust Officer at Republic National Bank, Dallas (1977-79); and Senior Analyst for the Teacher Retirement System of Texas (1972-76).
Mr. Hester currently serves on the ERS Board of Trustees, Investments Committee of the University of Texas Ex-Student’s Association (past Chair), the Advisory Committee of The MBA Investment Fund, LLC of the UT Graduate School of Business. He is a former board member of the University of Texas Investment Management Company, and formerly served on the Investment Advisory Committee of ERS (past Chair) and as an Investment Advisor to the Teacher Retirement System of Texas.
A graduate of the University of Texas at Austin (BBA, 1971; MBA, 1972), Mr. Hester received the Chartered Financial Analyst designation in 1977 and the Chartered Investment Counselor designation in 1992. He is the past president of the Austin Investment Association and a member and past president of the Austin/San Antonio Society of Financial Analysts and the Austin Society of Financials Analysts.
He currently serves on the Board of Governors of the Investment Adviser Association (IAA), on the Board of Trustees of the Long Center for the Performing Arts, on the Advisory Council of the KMFA Capitol Broadcasting Association, on the Board of Directors of the Scottish Rite Learning Center of Austin, Inc., and the Foundation for SafePlace (past Chair). Mr. Hester is a member of the University of Texas Chancellor’s Council, the Littlefield Society, and was recently elected to the Board of Longhorn Village and PlainsCapital Corporation, a Texas-based financial services company.
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Ms. Cydney Donnell
Vice-Chair
P.O. Box 13207
Austin, TX 78711
Term Expires: 8/31/2012
Appointed by Governor
Rick Perry
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Cydney Donnell was appointed to the ERS Board of Trustees by Governor Rick Perry in June 2007. She is the Director of Real Estate Programs and an Executive Professor at the Mays Business School of Texas A&M University, where she teaches in the finance department.
Formerly a Principal and Managing Director of European Investors/EII Realty Securities, Inc., she served in various capacities at EII, including Chair of the Investment Committee, Portfolio Manager of the real estate securities group, and Vice-President and Analyst. Prior to joining EII, she was a real estate lending officer at RepublicBanc Corporation in Dallas.
Ms. Donnell received the prestigious NAREIT Industry Achievement Award from the National Association of Real Estate Investment Trusts in 2006. The award is presented to recipients who have earned a distinguished reputation within the REIT business community and are recognized for their contributions to the industry and the national trade association. Ms. Donnell also has been named one of the 100 Women Real Estate Leaders for the 21st Century by the Association of Real Estate Women. She has served on the board and institutional advisory committee of NAREIT and in various leadership capacities for the Association of Former Students of Texas A&M University and the Junior League of the City of New York.
Ms. Donnell received a B.B.A. from Texas A&M University and an M.B.A. from Southern Methodist University.
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Mr. Don Green
Member
P.O. Box 13207
Austin, TX 78711
Term Expires: 8/31/2013
Elected Member
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Don Green was elected to the ERS Board of Trustees in 2001 and re-elected in 2007. He was Vice-Chair in 2006 and served as Chair in 2007. He currently serves as a Senior Advisor to Lt. Governor David Dewhurst, specializing in budget and financial policy issues, following six years as the Director of Budget and Policy for the Speaker of the House.
Mr. Green began his career in state government in 1980 with the Legislative Budget Board (LBB), serving as a budget analyst, senior budget analyst, and special assistant to the director. During his 15-year career with LBB, he worked on a diverse mixture of state agency budget issues, including transportation, public safety, agriculture, and human services. In 1995, Mr. Green became the Chief Financial Officer for the Department of Mental Health and Mental Retardation. From 1998 through 2002, Mr. Green served as the Chief Financial Officer for the Health and Human Services Commission.
A native of Riverdale, Georgia, he attended Clayton Junior College, Georgia Tech, and Shorter College in Georgia and earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics and Accounting. In 1977, the Harry S Truman Foundation named Mr. Green a Harry S Truman National Scholar. Mr. Green subsequently received a Master's Degree in Public Affairs and a Master's Degree in Business Administration from the University of Texas at Austin.
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Ms. Yolanda "Yoly" Griego
Member
P.O. Box 13207
Austin, TX 78711
Term Expires: 8/31/2015
Elected Member
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Yolanda Griego was elected to the ERS Board of Trustees in 2003 and serves as one of three elected members. Ms. Griego has been employed at the Texas Health & Human Services Commission (formerly Texas Department of Human Services) since 1971 and was named Employee of the Year for the El Paso area in 1996.
Ms. Griego is active in a number of civic organizations. She is the Chair of the West Texas State Agencies Association, which was established in 1989 to promote information sharing and networking among state agencies, educational institutions and elected officials to improve services. She is a member of the International Who's Who of Business Professionals and served as a member of the El Paso Mayor's Round Table in 1998.
Ms. Griego attended El Paso Community College and The University of Texas at El Paso, majoring in Social Work and Computer Technologies. She has a degree as a Public Accountant and Bilingual Business Secretary from International Business College. Ms. Griego is certified by the state as Spanish Interpreter and holds a Social Service Certification.
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Mr. Owen Whitworth
Member
P.O. Box 13207
Austin, TX 78711
Term Expires: 8/31/2011
Elected Member
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Owen Whitworth was elected to the ERS Board of Trustees in 1999, and re-elected in 2005. He was elected Vice-Chair in August 2003 and Chair in August 2004. He also serves as the Board's representative on the Board of Trustees for the Texas Growth Fund (TGF).
Mr. Whitworth is employed at the Texas Department of Transportation as Director of the Audit Office, overseeing department audit functions and reporting to the Texas Transportation Commission and the agency's Executive Director. He has served in this capacity since 1984. Joining the Texas Department of Transportation in 1981 as manager of accounting, he was responsible for the department's financial and cost accounting system operations up until assuming his current position.
He has a bachelor's in accounting from Idaho State University and is a Certified Public Accountant and a Certified Internal Auditor. In addition, he has served as Chairman of the State Agencies Internal Audit Forum and as Secretary of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials' subcommittee on internal and external audit. Mr. Whitworth also holds membership with the Austin Chapter of the Institute of Internal Auditors and with the Southwest Intergovernmental Audit Forum.
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Mr. Donald Wood
Member
P.O. Box 13207
Austin, TX 78711
Term Expires: 8/31/2014
Appointed by Speaker of
the House Tom Craddick
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Mr. Donald E. Wood was appointed to the ERS Board of Trustees by Speaker of the House Tom Craddick in January 2009. He is the President of Permian Enterprises, LTD in Odessa, Texas, and oversees the daily operations of the company which treats piping used in oil field production.
Mr. Wood is also a stockholder and serves on the Board of Directors of Western National Bank, where he is involved in setting the strategic direction of the bank and participates in the oversight of more than $900 million in assets.
From 1993 until 2001, Mr. Wood served as President of Southwest Convenience Stores, Inc. which owned and operated 172 7-Eleven stores located in West Texas and New Mexico and was recognized as the largest 7-Eleven licensed franchisee in the United States.
Mr. Wood has extensive experience with various business entities, including real estate development, mezzanine production lending, and the gasoline distribution business. He has been recognized by the Odessa Chamber of Commerce as Entrepreneur of the Year and received the Heritage of Odessa Award for Excellence in Business.
Mr. Wood has served on numerous non-profit boards and committees including UTPB Performing Arts Advisory Committee, Permian Basin Area Foundation, Midland Odessa Transportation Alliance and the Texas Prepaid Higher Education Tuition board.
A native of Odessa, Texas, Mr. Wood graduated from Texas Tech University with a Bachelor of Business Management.
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