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Editor’s note: see photo of Stephens at http://www.uh.edu/admin/media/nr/2004/09sept/ NEW REGENT CALVIN STEPHENS:
DALLAS BUSINESSMAN WITH DEEP HOUSTON ROOTS HOUSTON, Sept. 27, 2004 – Reflecting the growing scope of the University of Houston System’s importance for the entire state, the latest addition to the Board of Regents is a noted businessman from Dallas, Calvin Stephens. “We are extremely pleased that Gov. Perry has appointed Calvin Stephens to the University of Houston System Board of Regents. He is a wonderful addition to the board, both as an alumnus and as a major community leader in Dallas,” said Morgan Dunn O'Connor, chair of the UH System Board of Regents. “His appointment demonstrates the statewide impact and importance of the UH System. Our Board now includes representation from East Texas, Central Texas, South Central Texas, as well as Houston. Our sincere appreciation goes to outgoing Regent Theresa Chang who has served the UH System so well during her tenure.” While Stephens, the chairman and president of SSP Consulting, is indeed honored that the governor selected someone from “faraway” Dallas to help oversee the UH System, he’s quick to point out that he still considers Houston home in many regards. As a youth and teenager, the Port Arthur-born Stephens spent every summer here with family in Cuney Homes, a housing project near the University of Houston campus. “Many of my childhood friends are from the Third Ward area.
And I learned to swim right there in the pool at Jack Yates High
School, near the University,” Stephens recalled. “Those were sometimes turbulent, but mostly wonderful times on campus. African American students were beginning to play prominent roles and there was a very real sense of engagement and accomplishment. Those were the days of basketball star Elvin Hayes, of football great Warren McVea, of Lynn Eusan, our first black Homecoming Queen, and the start of the African American Studies program,” Stephens said. Moving to Dallas to attend graduate school at Southern Methodist University, Stephens earned an MBA and worked for the Cox School of Business at SMU. He also served as president of the Dallas Minority Business Development Center. His company, SSP Consulting, is a management consulting firm that specializes in development of minority businesses, providing bonding and insurance along with financial and technical assistance. Former Gov. William Clements appointed Stephens as a member of the State Advisory Council on Small Business Assistance and former Pres. Ronald Reagan appointed him to a term on the Board of the National Advisory Council on Vocational Education. He is currently the chairman of the African American Leadership Council of the Dallas County Republican Party. Additionally, Stephens is a board member of the Metropolitan YMCA, and the Cotton Bowl Athletic Association. He is an ordained deacon of the Pilgrim Rest Baptist Church. Married to Sandra Williams Stephens, he has four children – Derrick, Lincoln, Savannah and Chandler – and three grandchildren – Cinque, and twins, Bria and Haley. Appointed by Gov. Perry on Sept. 17, Stephens is scheduled to serve through Aug. 31, 2009. “I’ve always had a warm spot in my heart for Houston and for UH,” Stephens said. “The opportunity to give something back by serving as a regent is very gratifying.” For more information about the UHS Board of Regents, visit the Web site http://www.uhsa.uh.edu/regents/. ABOUT THE UNIVERSITY OF HOUSTON SYSTEM For more information about UH visit the university’s ‘Newsroom’ at www.uh.edu/admin/media/newsroom. |
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