Two new members were added to the Board of Trustees this year: Dr. Arthur Culpepper and Mitch Wilburn.
Culpepper is an ACU alumnus who currently lives in New Mexico and is the Chief HSC Compliance Officer at the University of New Mexico. He played football at ACU, graduating with the class of 1986. He said that even though members know him as a football player, they will now see a new side of him.
“What’s been really neat is how we are getting acquainted again but then they are getting a different insight into me,” Culpepper said. “But, there are still cracks about when I played football.”
Wilburn currently lives in Oklahoma and is a preaching minister at Park Plaza in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He graduated in 1990, and said that while he was a student, he never envisioned himself becoming a member of the board.
“I am just super honored to be apart of the board,” Wilburn said. “I always looked up to those people, I was very humbled when this opportunity came my way.”
As a new member, Culpepper said he went in with an attitude to listen to and learn from the existing members, throwing in his ideas when possible.
“It’s kind of like the first day of school,” Culpepper said. “One of the things you don’t want to do is to appear to aggressive, and act like you know everything, but on the contrary, I’m not a bashful person.”
As a minister, Wilburn brings a unique perspective to the board and can offer additional support in the form of ministry.
“If I can ever help out with relations between the local church and ACU I would be happy and honored to fill that role as well,” Wilburn said.
Wilburn also said that as a minister, he can offer spiritual support, but all members of the board bring a high level of faith into their work, keeping God at the heart of the decisions they make for the university.
“As you look around the board, people who make their living in secular vocations, I’m blown away by the spirituality levels,” said Wilburn. “Everyone I’ve encountered has deep walks with the Lord.”
Culpepper said that as a board member, he wants to make sure that students have the necessary cutting-edge tools they need to have a successful career once they graduate.
“One of the things I have been emphasizing with my participation with the board is, yes maintaining the financial goals of the institution,” Culpepper said. “But, also there is nothing more important than being able to transition every single student that graduates from ACU into the life they want.”
