Wachovia Excellence in Leadership Speakers Series Features Gen. Tommy
Franks

1. An audience of nearly 500 people gathered last October 27 at the UTD
Conference Center Auditorium to hear an address by Presidential Medal of
Freedom recipient and retired four-star United States Army General Tommy
Franks, who served as commander in chief, U.S. Central Command, in
Afghanistan and Iraq. Gen. Franks' appearance was part of The Leadership
Center at UTD's 2005-06 Wachovia Excellence in Leadership Speakers Series.

2. Later the same evening, (from left) UTD President David E. Daniel,
Ph.D., and Leadership Center Director Gerald Hoag and his wife, Betty,
visited with Gen. Franks at a reception at the Westin Galleria in Dallas
that preceded a dinner address by the general.

3. UTD dignitaries gathered with Gen. Franks (center) before his address,
including (from left) UTD President Daniel, Mr. and Mrs. Hoag, Mrs. Hasan
Pirkul, School of Management (SOM) Dean Hasan Pirkul, Ph.D.; SOM Associate
Dean Diane S. McNulty, Ph.D., and UTD Vice President for Research and
Economic Development Da Hsuan Feng, Ph.D.

4. Gen. Franks' address at the Westin event was titled "Leadership,
Management . . . and the Difference." The Leadership Center at UTD is part
of The University of Texas at Dallas School of Management. The center's
Wachovia Excellence in Leadership Speakers Series features prominent
leaders, scholars, government officials and business executives who share
their experiences with UTD students, faculty, staff and others from the
Dallas community. The second speaker in the series, well-known business
leader, consultant and author Jim Collins, gave a lecture April 4 at the
Eisemann Center in Richardson. The 2005-06 lecture series is being
sponsored by a $200,000 grant from Wachovia Bank. More information on the
Wachovia Excellence in Leadership Speakers Series is available at
http://som.utdallas.edu/leadership or by contacting Mr. Hoag at
972-883-4785 or jhoag@utdallas.edu.


Birkman Learning Center Opens at SOM

The School of Management (SOM) is the home of Birkman Learning Center at
The University of Texas at Dallas, giving executives another avenue to
hone their workplace skills and achieve additional widely acknowledged
certification.

The well-known Birkman Method is a multidimensional assessment that
integrates behavioral, motivational and occupational data with the goal of
improving workplace and employee performance. Matthew Zamzow, director of
training for Birkman International, says this is the first time away from
its home office in Houston the company has offered on an ongoing basis its
certification training for consultants. Mr. Zamzow says there are several
reasons Birkman, which was established more than 50 years ago, believed
the time was right to expand its base of operations, and UTD's School of
Management offered a prime location.

Robert Hicks, Ph.D., director of SOM's Executive and Professional Coaching
Program, is a certified Birkman consultant. Dr. Hicks, a licensed
psychologist specializing in industrial and organizational psychology,
says offering Birkman training complements other programs in the school's
coaching curriculum. "Rob was looking for different opportunities to
enhance UTD's executive education programs," Mr. Zamzow says.

He also notes that UTD's location, near a major airport hub, makes it easy
for his company's clients to come for training sessions and will offer
both the university and Birkman cross-development opportunities. He says
UTD students may learn about Birkman and decide to get certification in
that methodology; meanwhile those coming to UTD specifically for training
or to update their certification will be exposed to UTD's executive
education offerings and may wish to continue their studies in other School
of Management programs.

In addition, Mr. Zamzow says, there are long-term partnership
opportunities for the school and Birkman, possibly with students using the
Birkman instrument as part of their research. "We are hoping to capitalize
on that in the future," he says.

About 60 percent of those who hold Birkman certifications are independent
management consultants, and the remaining 40 percent are internal
consultants, Mr. Zamzow says. Dr. Hicks says the Birkman assessments have
"a wide variety of uses for organizations and individuals within
organizations."


IECG Speaker and Seminar Delve into the Changing Role of Directors

Attorney Holly J. Gregory, a corporate governance specialist in the New
York City headquarters of the law firm Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP, spoke
on the importance of restoring public confidence in the role of corporate
boards at the fall 2005 Institute for Excellence in Corporate Governance
(IECG) seminar.

The role of "directorship is a real occupation today and not just an
honorary position," Ms. Gregory told seminar attendees. The corporate
director's role "demands time and attention and interest and understanding
of the industry involved." Her address, delivered at the one-day seminar's
luncheon, focused on the impact of legal risks on the effectiveness of
public company directors.

The seminar, "Compliance and Beyond: Developing Effective Directors," was
part of a series of programs IECG presents designed to enhance the
abilities of corporate directors, senior officers and institutional
investors to protect and promote stakeholders' interests in an effective
and ethical manner.

IECG's seminars are accredited by Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS)
and are designated as official ISS Preferred Boardroom Education Programs.
Programs with such designation offer director participants special
continuing education credits.

In other IECG news, Constantine Konstans, Ph.D., SOM professor and
executive director of the institute, has announced that Dresser, Inc. and
Fossil, Inc. have joined IECG as corporate sponsors. Corporate sponsors
help the institute by reviewing and evaluating proposed programs and
identifying and recruiting speakers and panelists for IECG seminars. Other
IECG corporate sponsors are Exxon Mobil Corporation; JCPenney Company,
Inc.; Kimberly-Clark Corporation; Lennox International Inc.; The Staubach
Company; Texas Instruments Incorporated; and TXU Corp.

Four other companies - Deloitte, Haynes and Boone LLP, JPMorgan Chase, and
Marsh & McLennan Companies - serve the institute as strategic partners by
donating financial support and giving advice on their specific areas of
expertise.

IECG is also assisted by institutional advisors, which alert it to
impending changes and events that may have a broad effect on the area of
corporate governance. IECG's institutional advisors are the Center for
American and International Law; Financial Executives International;
Financial Executives International (Dallas); Greater Dallas Chamber; the
NASDAQ Stock Market, Inc.; and the Texas General Counsel Forum.

For more information on the IECG, contact Dr. Konstans at 972-883-6345 or
konstans@utdallas.edu or http://som.utdallas.edu/iecg.