Texas A&M University 12 Under 12 Young Alumni Spotlight

Originally at aggienetwork.com/12under12spotlight

Each year, The Association of Former Students’ 12 Under 12 Young Alumni Spotlight recognizes 12 Aggies who have graduated within the past 12 years for their outstanding accomplishments in business, civic service and philanthropy, and for representing Texas A&M’s core values of excellence, integrity, leadership, loyalty, respect, and selfless service.

The 12 Under 12 Young Alumni Spotlight was conceived by the Young Alumni Advisory Council, a body of young former students who advise The Association’s staff on matters related to young alumni programming and communications.

Over the next three days, we will announce the Aggies who were selected for the 2017 Young Alumni Spotlight on Aggie Network social media pages. All recipients will be listed on this webpage as the announcements roll out.

We congratulate these young men and women on their accomplishments, and thank them for their outstanding representation of Texas A&M University and the Aggie Spirit.

Cindy Koester ’04 is group lead at NASA’s Johnson’s Space Center for the International Space Station Electrical Power System Flight Controllers. She has received multiple JSC Group Achievement Awards for outstanding leadership in the development and execution of training for the crew and flight controllers for space shuttle and space station missions. Koester regularly mentors young men and women interested in STEM careers. Koester also volunteers in various capacities in her community including the Junior League and St. Luke’s United Methodist Church.

Grant Speakes ’04 is a student in Mays Business School’s Full-Time MBA program. He was awarded three Bronze Star Medals and the Commendation Medal for Valor during his service in the U.S. Army. Speakes has instructed future Army officers in ROTC courses at Texas A&M and helped initiate a veterans affinity group for MBA programs at Mays, providing support for current student veterans.

Capt. Juan Jurado ’06 is a doctoral student at the Air Force Institute of Technology. He received the National Air and Space Intelligence Center’s Rookie of the Year award for developing a novel ballistic missile search algorithm. Jurado is an active panelist for the Department of Defense Science, Mathematics, and Research for Transformation scholarship program, influencing promising youth in STEM fields of study. Jurado also volunteers as an academic instructor at two U.S. Air Force bases, educating engineers in various flight test topics.

Jeffrey Jensen ’10 is vice president of architecture at Arundo Analytics. While at Siemens Industry, he was awarded employee of the year for ingenuity and innovation. Jensen volunteers his time empowering young leaders as an ambassador for One Young World and advises aspiring entrepreneurs in Houston. Jensen is active with the Ironman Foundation.

Phillip Bethancourt ’04 is executive vice president of the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission. He leads the strategy implementation for Global Hunger Relief, raising significant contributions to serve needy individuals worldwide. Bethancourt began a service initiative at Southern Seminary, the “1937 Project,” similar in design to The Big Event at Texas A&M. Bethancourt also established and launched the Evangelicals for Life Conference, coinciding with March for Life in Washington,

D.C.

Lt. Cmdr. Brent Lacey ’05 is chief of gastroenterology at Naval Hospital Pensacola. He pioneered a large-scale hepatitis C screening program for the Department of Defense, which has already saved dozens of lives. Lacey mentors and recruits pre-med college students for the Navy Medical Corps and teaches classes for local church members seeking debt-free living. Lacey also endowed the MSC’s Luke J. Altendorf Leadership Award, given annually to an Aggie student leader.

Jordan Baucum ’06 is a senior advisor in policy, government and public affairs for supply and trading at Chevron. He co-founded Building a Future and San Francisco Lawn Party to provide educational opportunities to underprivileged children and youth, internationally and locally. Baucum is a student in the Executive MBA program at MIT Sloan.

Israel Escamilla ’11 is a senior manager at Procter & Gamble. He received his company’s A. G. Lafley CEO Award and Emerging Leader Award, both in the same year. Escamilla serves as chairman of the board for the YMCA of Greater Cincinnati and prepares students to pursue higher education through his volunteer efforts. Additionally, Escamilla participates in various mission trips and service projects hosted by his church.

Benjamin Casmer ’05 is chief operating officer at Bay Area Regional Medical Center in Webster, TX. He has served as board member for Habitat for Humanity, United Way, Chamber of Commerce and others. Casmer played a key leadership role in the establishment of an independent hospital and creation of its systems and processes. Through multiple relocations, Casmer has been involved with A&M Clubs in San Antonio, Midland, Fort Worth, Houston, and Bentonville, AR.

Brock Faulkner ’04 was owner and operator of Faulkner Cattle Co. and Faulkner Beef. He won the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Dean’s Outstanding Achievement Award for Early Career Research. While an instructor at Texas A&M, Faulkner was voted by his students as the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers’ Professor of the Year. Faulkner volunteered as an elder and small group leader for Community Church and was course director for the BCS Marathon. Faulkner’s name was called at Muster after leukemia took his life in February 2016.

Jordan Mullins ’05 is a partner at McGinnis Lochridge, a law firm in Austin. He was nominated to the Texas Bar Foundation as a Fellow and recognized as a Texas Super Lawyers Rising Star. Mullins has served on the board of directors for the Ronald McDonald House Charities of Central Texas and on the Capital City A&M Club scholarship committee. Mullins volunteers as a Class Agent, is involved with the Texas Aggie Bar Association, and serves as an advisory board member for the Texas A&M Corps of Cadets Association.

Andrey Postrigan ’06 is a materials manager at GE Oil and Gas. He served as a Special Forces commander in the U.S. Army and was awarded three Bronze Star Medals during his time of deployment. Postrigan mentors for NextOp—a nonprofit supporting veteran transition—and, through membership in additional networks, also assists veterans seeking employment. Postrigan began his MBA program at Rice University in fall 2016.