Newly inaugurated Gov. Greg Abbott appointed two new members to the Texas A&M Board of Regents Thursday.
The appointment of the two new regents, William “Bill” Mahomes Jr. and Robert L. “Bob” Albritton, is subject to Senate approval and would be effective Feb. 1, according to a release from the governor’s office. Abbott also reappointed current board chairman Phil Adams.
Albritton, who is the chairman of the Board & CEO of RCL Services Group and co-founder and CEO of Mayfair Petroleum & Minerals LLC, said as a graduate from Texas A&M the thought of coming back and serving on such a prestigious board is an honor.
“It’s the perfect full circle from being a student to then coming back in a position to continue the advancement of what we probably all think is the greatest university in the country,” Albritton said.
Albritton said he plans to get involved with the student body, which he said he feels would be made easier because he has two daughters attending A&M and has had two sons graduate.
Texas A&M is a family tradition, Albritton said, and he is glad to be the first appointed regent who is the child of a former regent.
“To the best of anyone’s knowledge this would be the first time a son has ever followed a father on the Board of Regents, which is very exciting and very humbling to me,” Albritton said. “When I was at A&M my father was a regent, and he got to hand me my diploma and my brother his diploma, and it appears that I will do the same thing for my two daughters.”
Mahomes, the managing partner of Mahomes Bolden PC, was the first African American to matriculate and graduate from Texas A&M as a member of the Corps of Cadets, according to the release.
“It is a great privilege to have been nominated by the governor,” Mahomes said. “It is a great privilege to serve A&M and to sort of give back to a university I feel has given me so much and I look forward to the opportunity of serving.”
Phil Adams, owner and President of Phil Adams Company, was appointed to the board by former Gov. Rick Perry in 2001 and reappointed in 2009, according to the press release.
Adams was unavailable for comment Thursday.