Board Members

Term Ends: 2025

David Alders of Nacogdoches is president of Carrizo Creek Corporation, managing partner of Buck Bay Timber, Ltd., Dagwood Timber Ltd., Alders Enterprises, Ltd. and manager of Caddo Farms LLC. He is a director and audit committee chair of Citizens 1st Bank and a director of the Texas Agricultural Land Trust. Additionally, he is a director of the Nacogdoches County Farm Bureau, vice president of the board of Pineywoods Groundwater Conservation District, and a member of the Executive Committee of the Region I Regional Water Planning Group. He is the chairman of the Texas Forestry Association’s Legislative Committee and Political Action Committee, vice-chairman of the board of Regents Academy of Nacogdoches and an elder at Grace Covenant Presbyterian Church. Alders received a Bachelor of Science in agricultural economics from Texas A&M University in 1985. He is a former member of the board of the State Bar of Texas and a former trustee of the Texas Center for Legal Ethics.

Alders was appointed to the SFA Board of Regents in 2013 by Governor Rick Perry and reappointed in 2019 by Governor Greg Abbott for a second six-year term.

Term Ends: 2027

Robert A. Flores of Nacogdoches is the chief financial officer of Elliott Electric Supply, a leading distributor of electrical and industrial automation supplies throughout the southern states. He is a board member and secretary/treasurer for The Micky Elliott Family Foundation.

Flores serves as chair of the Nacogdoches Economic Development Corporation and is a member of both the American Institute of Certified Public Accounts and the Texas Society of Certified Public Accountants. He is a past chair of the Nacogdoches Medical Center Governing Board and a previous board member of the Nacogdoches Rotary Club.

Flores received his Bachelor of Business Administration in accounting from SFA in 1985. He was appointed as a regent by Gov. Greg Abbott in July 2020.

Term Ends: 2023

Karen Gregory Gantt of McKinney is an attorney and partner at McCraw Gantt, PLLC. She focuses her practice on estate planning, trust and estate administration and fiduciary litigation. She is a member of the State Bar of Texas, Collin County Bar Association, North Texas Estate Planning Council and Dallas Estate Planning Council.

Gantt received a Bachelor of Arts in political science from SFA and was named Highest Ranking Senior. She received a Juris Doctor from The University of Texas School of Law. While a student at SFA, Gantt was a member and chapter president of Delta Delta Delta, and she is now a member of the North Dallas Area Tri Delta Alumnae Chapter. She is a past president of the SFA Alumni Association Board of Directors and a former member of the SFA Alumni Foundation Board of Governors.

At Trinity Presbyterian Church of McKinney, Gantt is an elder and has been a Sunday school teacher and youth group leader for many years. She is a patroness of the National Charity League—Sunflower Chapter and served as a grade-level advisor from 2019 – 2021.

Term Ends: 2023

Brigettee Carnes Henderson of Lufkin is an independent consulting interior designer and executive assistant at Carnes and Co. Auctioneers. She is secretary of the Angelina Arts Alliance Board of Directors, chair of the Angelina County American Cancer Society’s 2011 Cattle Baron’s Gala, and a member of the Buckner Family Place Board of Directors, Buckner Family Services Circle of Angels and Junior League of Lufkin Sustainers. She is a past board member of the Lufkin Salvation Army, Museum of East Texas and Angelina Beautiful Clean. She is also past president of the Junior League of Lufkin and past president of the Angelina County Aggie Mother’s Club. Henderson received two bachelor’s degrees from Stephen F. Austin State University.

Term Ends: 2023

Tom Mason of Dallas is executive vice president and chief financial officer of Hillwood Development Co, LLC. He is a board member of Caruth Village Homeowners’ Association and an officer of the Land-Hyland Scholarship Fund, Woodrow Wilson High School Class of 1966. He is a former member of the Urban Land Institute, The Real Estate Council, and the Real Estate Financial Executives Association. Mason received an honorable discharge from the United States Army Reserves and received a Bachelor of Science in math and general business from SFA. While attending SFA, he was a member of Phi Delta Theta social fraternity, sophomore class vice president, chairman of Greek Week activities, and elected to Who’s Who Among American Colleges and Universities.

Term Ends: 2025

Judy Larson Olson, a 30-year career mortgage and commercial lender, is producing branch manager for Supreme Lending in The Woodlands. A member of The Rotary Club of The Woodlands for 17 years, she served as its president from 2017 to 2018. Olson also has been recognized as a Paul Harris Fellow by the club. She is president of The Woodlands Rotary Foundation Board, on which she has served for two years. She also serves as the development chair of The Woodlands Arts Council. 

Olson earned her Bachelor of Arts in communications from Stephen F. Austin State University and her Master of Business Administration with an emphasis in finance from Texas A&M University. Her husband, Steve, and she live on 10 acres in Conroe and have one daughter, Nikki Drake, who has been working at The Woodlands Christian Academy for 13 years.
 

Term Ends: 2027

Laura Rectenwald of Longview is the CEO and owner of Titanium Environmental Services, where she manages operations and conducts environmental consulting for clients. A licensed professional geoscientist, her areas of expertise include Texas Risk Reduction Program Assessments, industrial regulatory compliance audits, soil and groundwater remediation projects, and litigation support. Rectenwald earned a bachelor’s degree in physics and a master’s in environmental science from Baylor University. Her doctorate in forestry is from SFA, and she has served as an adjunct faculty member for SFA’s Arthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture. A member of the vestry of Trinity Episcopal Church in Marshall, Rectenwald is the coordinator for Martha’s Kitchen, a ministry that provides free hot meals for local families every Thursday night. Rectenwald has previously served as chair for business advocacy with the Longview Chamber of Commerce, new family outreach coordinator for St. Mary’s Catholic School Home & School Association, and on the Longview ISD Foundation.

Term Ends: 2027

Nancy C. Windham of Nacogdoches is president and CEO of the Texas Forest Country Partnership, a 12-county economic development organization that enriches Deep East Texas through marketing, business development and advocacy. Windham has worked in economic development for more than 36 years and has led the EDCs at Nacogdoches, Lufkin and Frisco. She also served as executive director for both the Southern Economic Development Council, a 17-state economic development organization, and the Texas Economic Development Council. Windham serves on the executive committee of the Texas Rural Practitioners and is a board member of the Texas Forest Trail Region. Windham is a lifetime member of the Nacogdoches Chamber of Commerce and an honorary life member of the Texas Economic Development Council. She attended SFA and graduated from the Economic Development Institute at the University of Oklahoma. She is highlighted in a book, “Texas Women, Trailblazers, Shining Stars and Cowgirls,” a collection of portraits of Lone Star Ladies.

In addition to her appointment as an SFA regent, Gov. Greg Abbott has previously appointed Windham to the Texas Economic Development Corporation and the Podiatric Medical Examiners Advisory Board.

Term Ends: 2025

A community volunteer and self-employed business woman, Jennifer Wade Winston of Lufkin is a first-generation college student who earned a Bachelor of Business Administration in finance from SFA in 2000. She taught as an adjunct faculty member at SFA for 11 years and also taught Princeton Review preparation classes for the Medical College Admissions Test and the Law School Admissions Test. Winston is a type-rated twin-jet pilot and worked as a state-certified residential real estate appraiser for more than six years, specializing in land acquisition for oilfield applications and highway expansion through state eminent domain.

Winston is an advocate for CASA in the Pines. She has worked with the American Cancer Society’s Cattle Baron’s Gala and is a former board member of the Humane Society of Angelina County, Oak Creek Center and the Nacogdoches County Historical Society. She is a former volunteer at St. Cyprian’s Episcopal School, the March of Dimes, and the H.O.S.T. program at Brandon Elementary in Lufkin.
 
Winston was appointed in 2019 by Gov. Greg Abbott as a member of the SFA Board of Regents for a six-year term.

Term Ends: 2023

Paige Vadnais of Forney, Texas, has been appointed by Gov. Greg Abbott as the university’s student regent for the 2022-23 term. 

Vadnais received a Bachelor of Science in agriculture from SFA in December 2021 and is pursuing a Master of Arts in student affairs and higher education. During her time as an undergraduate, she held several leadership roles in the Traditions Council, serving as president her senior year.  

Vadnais currently serves as the graduate assistant for Student Life in the Division of Student Affairs, where she helps with Dance Marathon and Student Government Association. She hopes to build a career in higher education.