Virginia (Ginny) Urban and Andy Long both are active in the energy industry — Urban as a reservoir engineer at Gaedeke Energy and Long as senior analyst for CSG Investment’s energy finance group. Neither has direct ties to the Naveen Jindal School of Management. They agree, though, that it is important to offer support for the Jindal School’s Master of Science in Energy Management program as a source of high-quality talent for the energy industry.
These officers in the Dallas chapter of Young Professionals in Energy helped YPE establish the first endowed opportunity fund to provide support for the MS in Energy Management program.
“One of the primary objectives of YPE is to facilitate the development of the next generation of leaders in the energy industry,” says Urban, president of the Dallas YPE chapter. “Education is a vital component of this mission. We hope our endowment helps recruit top-notch talent to the energy industry.”
“The next generation of oil and gas professionals is even more important than the last, due to the massive hiring freezes back in the 1980s,” says Long, Dallas YPE past president. “We have a generation gap coming, and even though we are in a downturn, the need for high-quality employees is more vital than ever.”
Long, who earned a BA from the UT Dallas School of Interdisciplinary Studies in 2010, is a founding member and on the board of the JSOM Energy Alumni Affinity Chapter, says the new funding builds on YPE’s commitment last year to a mentor program between YPE and Jindal School students. “We want to grow that even more,” he says. “Energy finance and management are key to all energy-related deals, and in the coming years, UT Dallas students will play a vital role in that. We are honored to help support that.”
The endowment fulfills two missions, Urban says, giving back to the community and supporting energy-centric educational programs. “I am a huge supporter of anything UT Dallas,” Long says. “This is Texas. UT Dallas should have a thriving oil and gas presence attached with the school.”
