Gov. Kevin Stitt appointed President and CEO of Mewbourne Oil Company Kenneth S. Waits to the OU Board of Regents on Wednesday, according to a press release.
If Waits’ appointment is approved by the Oklahoma Senate, he will serve a seven-year term on the board until 2031, succeeding former Gov. Frank Keating.
Waits graduated with a bachelor’s in petroleum engineering from OU in 1983 before attending the University of Texas at Tyler for a graduate degree in business studies. After graduating from OU, Waits joined the Mewbourne Oil Company and has spent his professional career at Mewbourne Oil Company.
Mewbourne Oil Company is one of the most active drillers in the nation according to the release and one of the largest scholarship, internship and job providers at OU. Longtime OU donor and founder of Mewbourne Oil Company Curtis M. Mewbourne, is the namesake for OU’s Mewbourne College of Earth and Energy, previously known as the Mewbourne School of Petroleum and Geological Engineering.
“Ken is a national voice in the energy sector who knows the OU community well,” Stitt wrote in the release. “Ken loves the University of Oklahoma, and I can’t wait to see how he serves the school as a member of the Board of Regents.”
Waits is a council member on OU President Joseph Harroz Jr.’s Lead On: The University of Oklahoma’s Campaign for the Future, which was launched in 2022 and recently surpassed $1 billion in fundraising. He is also a chairman of the industry advisory boards for the Mewbourne College of Earth and Energy. Wait serves on the boards of the American Exploration and Production Council, the Permian Basin Strategic Partnership and the Permian Basin Petroleum Association.
"Serving my alma mater is an honor, and I'm deeply appreciative to Governor Stitt for the opportunity to uplift the school I love," Waits wrote in the release. "The students, faculty, and staff of OU continue to inspire me every day, and I look forward to giving back to the community in this new role."
Waits and his wife live in Tyler, Texas. Their daughter, Hanna Waits, graduated from OU in 2022. He would be the second regent to live out-of-state, as chair Eric Stevenson currently resides in Ohio.
Waits will serve a seven-year term on the board as one of seven people appointed by the governor with the approval of the state senate.
At the March Board of Regents meeting, the regents and university honored Keating, as it was his final meeting before retirement. Keating was appointed to the board by former Gov. Mary Fallin in March 2017. He succeeded longtime university donor and former Regent A. Max Weitzenhoffer.
In August, Mewbourne Oil Company agreed to pay a $5.5 million settlement over alleged air pollution in New Mexico and Texas. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency alleged in a complaint filed in New Mexico federal court the company violated the Clean Air Act repeatedly. The company operates over 2,100 oil and gas wells in Texas, New Mexico and Oklahoma.
The company did not admit liability in the settlement but did agree to put 422 of its oil and gas wells into compliance with state and federal clean air regulations.
This story was edited by Anusha Fathepure, Karoline Leonard and Ismael Lele.
