Our Accomplished Board
Mark Mey,
Board Co-Chair
Mark Mey recently retired after 9 years as Executive Vice President and Chief
Financial Officer of Transocean Ltd. He previously served as Executive Vice President
and Chief Financial Officer of Atwood Oceanics. More
Julie Vitek, Board Co-Chair
Julie Vitek is Vice President of Communications for ENGIE North America. In this role, she is responsible for leading external and internal communications activities to promote all of the key activities More
Tara Teeter,
Board Secretary
Tara Teeter is a Division Director in the Legal Group of the Commodities and Global Markets—Energy Markets Division of Macquarie Group. More
Patrick Buckley, Treasurer
Patrick Buckley leads the 401(k) retirement plan advisory services business for Hunters Creek Advisors. Previously, he was a Shareholder with Harper Pearson, a Houston-based accounting firm, where he specialized in ERISA plans and built the benefit plan practice from 25 to nearly 100 audited plans. More
Jacqueline Alvargenga Gerber
Jacqueline Alvarenga Gerber is a Partner at Vasquez Waite PLLC where she practices as a civil litigation attorney handling a variety of claims from commercial litigation to catastrophic injury defense. She serves on The Woods Project Board as an ex-officio member through the Junior League of Houston’s Outside Board Representative Program. More
Jared Caplan
Jared Caplan is a partner at the law firm Bradley Arant Boult Cummings, LLP. He has over two decades of multi-faceted litigation experience in a broad range of civil matters including construction, oilfield, and financial services. He specializes in representing and advising clients on OSHA-related matters. More
Lorena Chavez
Lorena Chavez has been in banking for over 20 years. She is Vice President, Treasury Management Sales Office at ServisFirst Bank. She has worked as a Commercial Client Specialist for Woodforest National Bank, focusing on commercial clients in the Houston and Dallas markets. More
Critz Cullen
Critz Cullen grew up on a small farm in northwest Iowa. His mother was a middle school teacher. His dad started out farming with his family, then went to college at night to become a teacher and later a high school counselor.
Critz earned his BS from the University of Iowa, an MS from the University of Michigan, and an MBA from the University of Houston-Clear Lake. More
Anna Eastman
Anna Eastman is a committed leader in the Greater Houston community and a twenty-year resident of the Heights. She has served as Texas State Representative for District 148 and two four-year terms as District I Trustee on the Houston ISD Board of Trustees. More
Horacio Fernandez
Before entering public education, Horacio worked a number of years providing graphics support to several companies, including CRSS. He also served as the director of cinematography on two low budget films. More
Jessica Gregg
Jessica Gregg is a Community Volunteer and mother of two daughters. As a member of the Post Oak Chapter of National Charity League, Jessica has volunteered throughout Houston and served in various leadership roles More
Courtney Hoyt
Courtney Hoyt is the Manager of Volunteer Services at Ben Taub Hospital, and serves on The Woods Project Board as an ex-officio member through The Junior League of Houston’s Outside Board Representative Program. More
Gil Melman
Gil has served as SER’s Chief Compliance Officer since 2022. He also provides legal services to SER Capital and certain portfolio companies in his capacity as outsourced counsel. Gil has over 30 years’ experience as an attorney practicing in the energy and renewables sectors. More
Maxwell Olumba
Maxwell Olumba recently retired after practicing for many years as a Therapeutic Optometrist and Optometric Glaucoma Specialist. During this time, he opened and grew his private practice to serve Houston’s eye care needs. More
Mary Rivera Tysor
Mary is a Community Volunteer and has served in various volunteer roles throughout the Houston community. She is currently the President of the Civic Association in her neighborhood. More
Arjun Selvakumar
Arjun recently retired after a 28‑year career leading engineering innovation and product development across the seismic, instrumentation, automotive, and micromachine manufacturing sectors. Most recently, he served as Chief Technology Officer and Senior Vice President of Science and Technology at INOVA Geophysical, Inc., where he oversaw advancements in seismic acquisition and instrumentation. More
Michael Schmidt
Michael Schmidt is a Senior Vice President and Private Wealth Advisor with Merrill Private Wealth Management and a leader at The Massey Schmidt Harper Group. With nearly three decades of experience in financial markets, he specializes in strategic asset allocation, investment management, and long-term planning, skills he brings to organizational governance and mission-driven leadership. More
Dr. Heidi Schwarzwald
Heidi Schwarzwald currently serves as the Chief Medical Officer and Senior Vice President for Signify Health HCS, A CVS Health Company. More
Cindy Tessler
Cindy Tessler is the Founder of Let’s First Calibrate. Cindy is Colombian by birth but a lifelong Texan, graduating with a B.A. in Sociology More
Esteemed Advisory Board
Gabe Castaneda, Senior Vice President, Commercial Banking, Frost
Devon Graham, Vice President, Commercial Lending, Amegy Bank
Rody Grant, Director Business Development, Akedis, L.L.C.
Tom Hughes, Realtor, Keller Williams
Steven Sheldon, Director and Senior Wealth Advisor, Mariner Wealth Advisors
Victor Tekell, Executive Vice President, Texas Capital Bank
Kim Traylor, Director of Client Services, G&A Partners
Whitney Walsh, Community Leader
Board Chair Emeritus
Carlton Cook, 2016
Terry Bruner, 2017-2018
Vean Gregg, 2019-2020
Jeremy Samuels, 2021-2022
Anna Eastman, 2023-2024
