As Oklahoma’s first secretary for Science and Technology and the University of Oklahoma’s first university vice president for Technology Development, W. Arthur Skip Porter helped lead the state’s efforts to transform its economy from one based on commodities to one based on intellectual property and technology.

Prior to coming to Oklahoma in 1998, Porter was president and CEO of the Houston Advanced Research Center, a nonprofit, university-linked research institution with major research interests in energy, the environment and policy studies focused on IP development and transferring technology to the marketplace. He previously served as director and CEO of the Texas Engineering Experiment Station, part of the Texas A&M University System, and was a tenured professor of electrical engineering and director of A&M’s Institute for Solid State Electronics.

In addition to serving as SWeNT’s chairman, Porter also is a board member of three publicly-traded companies: Stewart Information Services Corp. (NYSE), Bookham Technology Ltd. (NASDAQ and LSE) and Electro Scientific Industries (NASDAQ). He served as ESI’s chairman from 1987 to 1992.

Porter holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in physics from the University of North Texas and a doctorate in interdisciplinary engineering from Texas A&M. He formerly served as dean of OU’s College of Engineering.