Gov. Abbott appoints regents to Texas Tech system

WICHITA FALLS, Texas (KAUZ) - Texas Gov. Greg Abbott appointed three new members to the Texas Tech University System Board of Regents.

The new appointees are Clay C. Cash, Tim G. Culp, and Shelley Sweatt.

“Our system and component universities are experiencing tremendous momentum, and we look forward to each of our new regents joining our system family and collaborating with us to chart a bright future. I also want to thank J. Michael Lewis, John Steinmetz, and John Walker for their years of service to our board and university system, we have accomplished remarkable achievements during their tenure of leadership, and we are grateful for their years of support.” Tedd L. Mitchell, M.D., chancellor of the TTU System said.

All three appointees are subject to confirmation by the Texas Senate before officially taking the oath of office and starting their tenure on the board. Regents are appointed to six-year terms by the governor. Their first board meeting is expected to be in May, pending senate confirmation.

The three appointed regents replace Lewis, Steinmetz, and Walker on the TTU System board, all of whom had appointments that expired in January of this year.

Clay Cash is the president of Cash Family Investments, which comprises ranching operations, real estate holdings, and oil and gas investments. He also is president of the Cash Family Foundation and previously served as vice president of Atmos Energy, in addition to several leadership roles during his career with the company from 1994 until his retirement in 2018. He is a board member of the Texas Rangers Association Foundation and the Ranching Heritage Association, which supports the National Ranching Heritage Center at Texas Tech University (TTU). In addition, he currently serves on the board of directors for the Texas Tech Foundation, Inc.

Cash earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration management from TTU’s Rawls College of Business in 1997. He and his wife, Ashley, have four children. In addition, Cash comes from a family of Red Raiders, including his parents Don and Kay Cash, who earned degrees in industrial engineering and education, respectively.

Tim Culp is the president of Southwest Royalties, Inc., and Desert Production, Inc. Previously, he served as founder and president of Tandem Energy Corporation and as vice president of Adobe Resources Corporation.

He is the chairman of the TTFI and the First United Methodist Church Midland Executive Team. He is a member and former board of directors member of the Permian Basin Petroleum Association and former member of the Texas Society of CPAs and the American Society of CPAs.

He is a former board member of the Midland Chamber of Commerce and former chair of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society – West Texas Division. Culp earned a bachelor’s degree in accounting from TTU in 1981. He and his wife, Annette, who also graduated from TTU with a degree in fashion merchandising, have four children, three of which have earned degrees from TTU.

Shelley Sweatt, Ed.D., is the president and CEO of The Priddy Foundation and president of The Priddy Foundation Board of Trustees. She is a member of the Texas Woman’s University Board of Regents and previously served as a member of the Midwestern State University Board of Regents.

Previously, she has held numerous positions within the Burkburnett Independent School District as a high school chemistry teacher, high school assistant principal, and executive director of curriculum, instruction, and assessment. She is an honorary life member of the Texas Association of School Administrators; a member of Exponent Philanthropy, Grantmakers for Effective Organizations; a board member of the Wichita Falls Chamber of Commerce, and a sustaining member of the Junior League of Wichita Falls.

She is co-chair of the Texas Rural Funders Membership Committee and a board member for Philanthropy Southwest, where she also serves as chair of the Professional Learning Committee and a member of the Conference Planning Committee.

Sweatt earned a bachelor’s degree in education from TTU, a master’s degree in educational supervision from Texas Woman’s University, and a doctorate in educational administration from the University of North Texas. She and her husband, Greg, who also graduated from TTU with a degree in engineering technology, have a daughter, Merrill, who also graduated from TTU with a degree in interior design in 2009.