Board appoints three new members

Mark Crews, Dr. Swaid Swaid and Mark Weeks were added to the University’s board of trustees on May 6 and attended their first board meeting in June. Their appointment brings the number to 23 men and women serving as Harding’s governing body.

“Each of these men are great supporters of the University and align with our mission,” Chairman of the Board Robert Walker said. “They will each bring a unique talent and will join with the current board in thinking strategically as we transition to our new president.”

Crews serves on the board of directors for Texas Institute of Science, Cimarron Energy and Detechtion Technologies. He has held several leadership positions including executive-in-residence for Summit Partners, senior vice president and general manager within the Oilfield Division for Lufkin Industries and vice president for Cameron International Corp. He earned his bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from Texas A&M University and completed a program for management development from Harvard Business School. Crews and his wife, Roxi, live in Searcy and have three children.

Swaid is a neurosurgeon and currently serves as CEO of the Surgical Institute of Alabama. He is a fellow of the American College of Surgeons and serves as chairman of the Certificate of Need Board of the Alabama State Health Planning and Development Agency. He has held numerous positions including medical director of CyberKnife of Birmingham, chairman of the Department of Surgery at Brookwood Medical Center, chairman of the Neuroscience Division and medical director of HealthSouth Medical Center. Swaid graduated from Harding with a degree in biology and earned his Doctor of Medicine from the University of Alabama in Birmingham Medical School. He and his wife, Christy, live in Birmingham, with their two children.

Weeks is founder of Woodmark Associates LLC, an investment management company based in Brentwood, Tennessee. Previously, he served as senior vice president of finance and controller for CVS Caremark Rx Inc. and as a senior manager at Ernst & Young. Weeks earned his undergraduate degrees in accounting and computer science from Harding and his Master of Business Administration from Vanderbilt University’s Owen School of Management. He is a CPA and member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. He and his wife, Stacy, live in Brentwood and have three children.

Additionally, longtime board member Richard Gibson announced his retirement on May 6, after serving 54 years.

“Richard will be sorely missed as he has served on the finance/investment committee and overseen the growth of our endowment,” Walker said. “His contribution to the board has been unmatched.”