Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) News

Flawn elected chairman of SwRI^® Board of Directors

McBride named vice chairman, others named trustees

San Antonio -- November 24, 1997 -- The election of Dr. Peter T. Flawn of Austin, Texas, to chairman of the Board of Directors of Southwest Research Institute™ (SwRI) was announced today during its 50th annual meeting. Flawn, who is currently president ad interim of The University of Texas at Austin (UT-Austin), previously served a two-year term as vice chairman of the SwRI Board. Flawn became a trustee of SwRI in 1973 and a Board member in 1989. General William V. McBride, retired U.S. Air Force vice chief of staff and former president of the Greater San Antonio Chamber of Commerce, was elected vice chairman of the SwRI Board. McBride became an SwRI trustee in 1983 and a Board member in 1992.

In other actions at today's meeting, the chairman announced the election of J. Dan Bates as president of the Institute. Bates, SwRI executive vice president-finance and acting Institute president since September 22, 1997, replaces long-time president Martin Goland, who died October 29. The elections of Bates, Flawn, McBride, and other officers of the Institute occurred at the Board of Directors meeting held October 27.

Also, four prominent Texas businessmen and one distinguished academic were elected trustees of SwRI. They are: Paul Eisman, senior vice president of Ultramar Diamond Shamrock Corp., in San Antonio; Rolf R. Haberecht, chairman and chief executive officer of VLSI Packaging Corporation, in Richardson, Texas; L. Lowry Mays, chairman and chief executive officer of Clear Channel Communications, Inc., in San Antonio; Robert S. McClane, president, CFBI, in San Antonio; and Dr. Ben G. Streetman, dean of the College of Engineering, The University of Texas at Austin.

Flawn holds a bachelor's degree in geology from Oberlin College (Ohio) and a doctorate in geology from Yale University. He was appointed executive vice president of UT-Austin in 1972. In 1973, Flawn was named president of The University of Texas at San Antonio. He became president of UT-Austin in 1979 and returned as interim president in 1997.

He is a director of Harte-Hanks Communications, Inc., Tenneco, Inc., and El Paso Energy, Inc. He was elected to the National Academy of Engineering in 1974 and is a member of the Geological Society of America, the American Geological Institute, and the American Association of Petroleum Geologists.

McBride is the recipient of more than 25 military citations, including the Department of Defense Distinguished Service Medal, the French Croix de Guerre, and four Air Force Distinguished Service Medals. His military service began in 1942 as a pilot during World War II, and over his 36-year career included positions of command and staff duty at all levels of responsibility. From 1971 to 1972, he was vice commander-in-chief of United States Air Forces in Europe. From 1972 to 1974, he was commander of the Air Training Command, Randolph Air Force Base, San Antonio, and from 1974 to 1975, commander of the Air Force Logistics Command at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio. In 1975, he became vice chief of staff of the United States Air Force, a post he held until his retirement in 1978. From 1982 to 1987, he was president of the Greater San Antonio Chamber of Commerce.

He is a member of the Board of Directors, the Air Force Association, Arlington, Virginia; the Board of Trustees, the San Antonio Medical Foundation; the Board of Trustees, the Falcon Foundation, Colorado Springs, Colorado; the Advisory Council of the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences, The University of Texas at San Antonio; Site and Design Committee, the Air Force Memorial Foundation, Arlington, Virginia; and a Trustee Emeritus of the Aerospace Education Foundation, Arlington, Virginia.

For more information about the SwRI appointments, contact Deborah Deffenbaugh, Communications Department, Southwest Research Institute, P.O. Drawer 28510, San Antonio, Texas 78228-0510, Phone (210) 522-2046, Fax (210) 522-3547.

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