James M. Windham

James Windham Jr., was born in 1942 to James M. Windham, Sr., and Woermann Gibson Windham. He married Lela Lynn Boyd in 1969 and the couple had two children, Victoria Wind and Caroline Holian. A graduate of Livingston High School, where he served as student body president, Windham received a BBA in finance and accounting from the University of Texas at Austin and a degree from the Southwestern Graduate School of Banking, Southern Methodist University. He served in the U.S. Army and Texas Army National Guard and was discharged as First Lieutenant in 1972. Windham entered commercial banking in 1969 and served as Senior Vice President and chairman of the commercial banking division of Capital National Bank of Houston. At Western Bank of Houston, he served as Executive Vice President and Director and became Chairman of the Bank and Chief Executive Officer of its parent, Western Bancorporation. In 1988, he founded Windham Capital, Inc., an investment banking and corporate finance advisory firm, and served there until 2000. As a sole practitioner, he provided investment portfolio consulting services until 2007. Windham served on a number of civic, charitable, and business organizations. He was president of the East Texas Chamber of Commerce (ETCC), 1974-1980, and represented the organization during the founding the Texas Chamber of Commerce (TCC) in 1985. He subsequently helped negotiated the TCC's merger with the Texas Association of Business (TAB) in 1994 and served as the TAB's chair. At the University of Texas at Austin, he has served as a member of the Chancellor’s Council, the President's Associates, the Littlefield Society, the Longhorn Foundation, the Department of Finance Advisory Council, and as a member of the advisory board of the Thomas Jefferson Center for the Core Texts and Ideas. Gov. Bill Clements appointed Windham to the Board of Regents of Stephen F. Austin State University, where he served from 1989-1995. In addition, Gov. Rick Perry appointed Windham to the Texas State Board for Educator Certification. Other charitable activities include his work with the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, where he served as director, vice president, and executive committee member. Windham was a founding director of the Texas Lyceum Association and director of the Independent Bankers Association of Texas. In 2006, Windham founded the non-profit organization Texas Institute for Education Reform (TIER), an organization dedicated to advancing standards and accountability in public education, where he has served as chairman. TIER led to the founding of the Texas Coalition for a Competitive Workforce, a public education reform coalition advocating for higher standards for teaching and student achievement. In 2015, Windham received the Conscience Builder Award for work in education by the League of United Latin American Citizens Texas Chapter. In 2016, TIER combined with the non-profit Texans for Education Reform to form Texas Aspires, http://texasaspires.org, where Windham serves as co-chairman.