Chairman of the Board, Chief Executive Officer and President
Cary D. Brown is Chairman of the board of directors of our general partner and President and Chief Executive Officer of our general partner. Mr. Brown has served as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer since our founding in October 2005, and was appointed as President effective March 16, 2012. Prior to October 2005, Mr. Brown co-founded two businesses, Moriah Resources, Inc. and Petroleum Strategies, Inc. Moriah Resources, Inc. was formed in 1992 to acquire oil and natural gas reserves. Petroleum Strategies, Inc. was formed in 1991 to serve as a qualified intermediary in connection with the execution of Section 1031 transactions for major oil companies, public independents and private oil and natural gas companies. Mr. Brown has served as Executive Vice President of Petroleum Strategies, Inc. since its inception in 1991. Mr. Brown served as an auditor for Grant Thornton in Midland, Texas from January 1991 to June 1991 and for Touche Ross in Houston, Texas from June 1989 to December 1990. In 1995, Mr. Brown also co-founded and organized with Mr. Dale Brown, The Executive Oil Conference, which is held in Midland, Texas and draws over 300 oil and natural gas industry professionals each year. Mr. Brown has a Bachelor of Business Administration degree, with honors, from Abilene Christian University. Mr. Brown has 22 years of experience in the oil and natural gas industry with 20 years of experience in the Permian Basin.
Executive Vice President, Chief Development Officer, Secretary and Director
Kyle A. McGraw is a member of the board of directors of our general partner and also serves as Executive Vice President, Chief Development Officer and Secretary of our general partner. Mr. McGraw was appointed as Executive Vice President, Chief Development Officer and Secretary effective March 16, 2012, and has served as a director since our founding in October 2005. Previously, Mr. McGraw served as Executive Vice President of Business Development and Land of our general partner from our founding in October 2005 to March 2012. Mr. McGraw joined Brothers Production Company in 1983, and has served as its General Manager since 1991 and became President in 2003. During his 23-year tenure at Brothers Production Company, Mr. McGraw has served in numerous capacities including reservoir and production engineering, acquisition evaluation and land management. Mr. McGraw has a Bachelor of Science degree in Petroleum Engineering from Texas Tech University. Mr. McGraw has 29 years of experience in the oil and natural gas industry in the Permian Basin.
Dale A. Brown is a member of the board of directors of our general partner and has served in such capacity since our founding in October 2005. Mr. Brown has been President of Moriah Resources, Inc. since its inception in 1992 and President of Petroleum Strategies, Inc. since he co-founded it in 1991 with his son, Cary D. Brown. Mr. Brown is a certified public accountant. Mr. Brown has a Bachelor of Science in Accounting from Pepperdine University.
William R. Granberry has over 40 years of experience in the oil and gas industry. Mr. Granberry is a member of the Board of Directors of The Williams Companies, Inc. and is a member of Compass Operating Company, LLC, a small, private oil and gas exploration, development and producing company with properties in West Texas and Southeast New Mexico. From 1999 through September 2004, he managed investments and consulted with oil and gas companies. Mr. Granberry was President and Chief Operating Officer of Tom Brown, Inc. from 1996 to 1999. Tom Brown, Inc. was a public oil and gas company with exploration, development, acquisition and production activities throughout the central United States. Mr. Granberry earned B.S. and M.S. degrees in Petroleum Engineering from the University of Texas and upon graduation, worked for Amoco Production Company for 16 years.
G. Larry Lawrence has been a member of the board of directors of our general partner since May 1, 2006. Since June 2006, Mr. Lawrence has been self employed as a management consultant doing business as Cresent Consulting. From May 2004 through April 2006 Mr. Lawrence served as Controller of Pure Resources an exploration and production company and a wholly owned subsidiary of Unocal Corporation which was acquired by Chevron Corporation. From June 2000 through May 2004, Mr. Lawrence was a practice manager of the Parson Group, LLC, a financial management consulting firm whose services included Sarbanes Oxley engagements with oil and natural gas industry clients. From 1973 through May 2000, Mr. Lawrence was employed by Atlantic Richfield Company (ARCO) where he most recently (from 1993 through 2000) served as Controller of ARCO Permian. Mr. Lawrence has a Bachelor of Arts in Accounting, with honors, from Dillard University.
William D. (Bill) Sullivan was appointed to the board of directors of our general partner upon completion of our private equity offering on March 15, 2006. Since May 2004, Mr. Sullivan has served as a director of St. Mary Land & Exploration Company, a publicly traded exploration and production company. From May 2004 through its sale in August 2005, Mr. Sullivan served as a director of Gryphon Exploration Company, a privately held exploration and production company. Prior to joining the board of directors of St. Mary Land & Exploration Company and Gryphon Exploration Company, Mr. Sullivan was employed in various capacities by Anadarko Petroleum Corporation from 1981 to August 2003, most recently as Executive Vice President, Exploration and Production (from August 2001 through August 2003). From June 15, 2005 to August 5, 2005, Mr. Sullivan was president and CEO of Leor Energy L.P., a privately held exploration and production company. Mr. Sullivan has a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering, with high honors, from Texas A&M University.
Kyle D. Vann was appointed to the board of directors of our general partner upon completion of our private equity offering on March 15, 2006. From 1979 through December 2004 Mr. Vann was employed by Koch Industries most recently serving as Chief Executive Officer of Entergy Koch, LP, an energy trading and transportation company, from its inception in February 2001 through its sale at year end 2004. Mr. Vann continues to serve Entergy as a consultant and serves on the board of Texon, LP, a private petroleum transportation company. On May 8, 2006, Mr. Vann was appointed to the board of directors of Crosstex Energy, L.P., a publicly traded midstream master limited partnership. Mr. Vann has a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering from the University of Kansas.