Campus News
IN THIS ISSUE, WE SPOTLIGHT BOARD OF TRUSTEES MEMBER
R. Brad Martin, chairman of Chesapeake Energy, chairman of RBM Ventures and retired chairman and CEO of Saks Inc.
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Martin served as CEO of Saks and its predecessor firm for nearly 20 years, during which the company grew from a 10-store base in East Tennessee to become a Fortune 500 enterprise. Martin also co-founded Corporate Child Care, Inc., which became the largest corporateaffiliated child care company in the United States. As chairman of RBM Ventures, he is a partner and investor in a variety of private businesses. Martin serves on the board of directors of FedEx Corp., Chesapeake Energy and Pilot/Flying J. Through his business experiences, he has developed an understanding of the distinction between the responsibilities of a board and the executive leaders of an enterprise or institution. “The charting of the course of the University of Memphis is the responsibility of our administrative and faculty team,” Martin says. “The Board has the responsibility of approving that strategy, allocating resources and ensuring accountability.”
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U N I V E RS I T Y O F M E M P H I S M AGA Z I N E
An independent board for the University of Memphis permits the University to develop its own unique strategy and allocate resources accordingly. “The President has articulated important goals, such as growing access, enrollment, student outcomes and important research and discovery, and has stressed doing so in a manner that provides service to the interests of the communities in which the University operates,” says Martin. “I am privileged to help support those goals.” Martin graduated from the University of Memphis where he served as president of the Student Government Association and earned an MBA from the Owen Graduate School of Management at Vanderbilt University. He returned to the UofM for the 2013-14 academic year to serve as interim president, and later was awarded an honorary Doctor of Letters from the University. Martin served five terms as a member of the Tennessee House of Representatives and holds the distinction of being the youngest person ever elected to the Tennessee legislature. “From my time in the Assembly, I clearly understand there are
standards of transparency and public service that are a key part of the responsibility of the University of Memphis,” Martin says. He is involved in a number of civic and philanthropic activities and chairs the Martin Family Foundation. Martin is also an accomplished writer. He is co-author of the book Five Stones: Conquering Your Giants and wrote the children’s book Myles’ Pesky Friends. “I actually took a class on creative writing while I was a student at the University of Memphis,” he recalls. “It just took me a few decades to put what I learned to some good use!”