ACCOUNTING & FINANCE
Argent Trust Co. has hired Brittyn Russell Brender as a wealth adviser in its new Fort Worth office, which opened in March and is one of six Texas locations for the Louisiana-based company. The firm also has a new office in Dallas. Argent Trust is a division of Argent Financial Group, an independent trust-based wealth management firm based in Ruston, Louisiana, and responsible for more than $17 billion in client assets.
Earlier in July, AmeriTrust Companies based in Tulsa, Oklahoma, merged with Argent Financial Group. With that merger, Argent now has responsibility for $19 billion in client assets and 2 million mineral acres, and it comprises over 270 professionals operating 29 locations in 12 Southern states — Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee and Texas.
EDUCATION
The University of Texas at Arlington has appointed Joe Carpenter as senior associate vice president and chief communications officer for the Department of Institutional Advancement, effective Aug. 20. Carpenter is currently vice president for university relations and chief communications officer at Radford University in Radford, Virginia.
Carpenter will work closely with the vice president of institutional advancement, Dee Robinson, President Vistasp M. Karbhari and senior leaders to lead the university’s global marketing and communication efforts, institutional marketing and brand positioning, internal communication, media relations and community outreach.
Previously, Carpenter served in the U.S. Navy, retiring at the rank of commander. His many Navy public affairs assignments included director of congressional information and public affairs for the Secretary of the Navy’s Office of Legislative Affairs in Washington, D.C., and director of public relations and chief communications officer at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland.
Carpenter earned a bachelor’s degree at the U.S. Naval Academy and a master’s degree at the U.S. Naval War College.
HONORS & AWARDS
The Pavilion at Toyota Music Factory is the ninth highest- attended amphitheater in the world for the first half of 2018 – right behind Red Rocks Amphitheater and seven other long-running institutional concert venues, according to Pollstar. The venue is in its first year of operation.
LAW
Evan McGuire has joined the downtown Fort Worth office of Dorsett Johnson & Swift LLP. McGuire will focus on real estate, construction and commercial transactions. He is a graduate of the Texas A&M University Mays Business School and of St. Mary’s School of Law.
REAL ESTATE
Irving-based JPI has promoted Matt Brendel to divisional president and managing partner of the Central Region, where he will oversee all components of JPI’s Texas multifamily operation.
TECHNOLOGY
TTI Inc. has appointed John Archer to the position of vice president for global ethics and compliance.
TRANSPORTATION
TxDOT has promoted Loyl Bussell to Fort Worth district engineer. A TxDOT employee since 1984, he has been the Fort Worth District’s deputy district engineer since 2017. Bussell’s appointment fills the vacancy left by Brian Barth who was named TxDOT’s transportation program officer in 2017.
Trinity Metro has hired Linda Thornton as vice president of marketing and communications. Her career has included corporate communications at Boeing, communications manager for the State of Texas at GE Transportation, communications and Positive Train Control (PTC) program communications manager at BNSF Railway, and chief marketing officer at CTC Inc. One of her highest-profile assignments was handling communications and media relations for delegate and media transportation at the 2016 Democratic National Convention. Earlier in her career, she was the principal at Que Public Relations, a boutique agency.
She earned a bachelor’s degree in English from the University of Iowa and a master’s degree in journalism from the University of North Texas and is accredited in public relations.
Send newsmakers to Robert Francis at rfrancis@bizpress.net.