2015 Scheduled Speakers
W. Bruce Bullock
Director of the Maguire Energy Institute, SMU Cox
W. Bruce Bullock was named director of the Maguire Energy Institute at SMU Cox School of
Business in May 2007, steering energy education and energy policy programs. Under his leadership,
the institute has implemented an energy finance concentration within the Cox MBA program, an
energy management concentration within the BBA program and restarted the Frank Pitts Energy
Lecture Series. Bullock spent 25 years in oil and gas before joining SMU Cox.
Joseph R. Dancy
Adjunct Professor of
Energy and Environmental Law
SMU Dedman School of Law
Joseph R. Dancy is the portfolio manager of the LSGI Venture Fund L.P., a private investment
partnership for SEC accredited investors, and is CEO of LSGI Advisors Inc. The LSGI Venture
Fund (LsgiFund.com) focuses on small, profitable, growing and undervalued publicly traded
companies. He is an adjunct professor of Oil and Gas Law at SMU Cox and also teaches Oil and
Gas Environmental Law and Environmental Law at the SMU Dedman School of Law.
Bernard L. Weinstein
Associate Director
Maguire Energy Institute
Bernard L. Weinstein is Associate Director of the Maguire Energy Institute and an Adjunct
Professor of Business Economics at SMU Cox School of Business. From 1989-2009 he was
Director of the Center for Economic Development and Research at the University of North Texas.
He earned degrees at Dartmouth and Columbia University and holds a Ph.D. from Columbia.
Weinstein was named a Fellow of the George W. Bush Institute in 2012.
Luke Jackson
BENTEK Energy
Cliff Johnson
President
Pipeline Research Council International
(PRCI)
Cliff Johnson joined Pipeline Research Council International (PRCI) in September 2010 as
president. Prior to joining to PRCI, Johnson spent 13 years at NACE International, holding a variety
of positions. His most recent role was as NACE’s director of Public Affairs, leading NACE’s
legislative initiatives. Prior to NACE, he worked for Texas State Sen. Gregory Luna as a legislative
aide. He has also worked for U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, the governor of Texas, Ann Richards,
and U.S. Congresswoman Connie Morella. Johnson earned his master’s degree in public affairs from
the Lyndon Baines Johnson School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas at Austin. He earned
his Certified Association Executive (CAE) designation from the American Society of Association
Executives. He currently lives with his wife and five children in Centreville, VA.
Donald F. Santa
President and CEO
INGAA
Donald F. Santa is president and CEO of the Interstate Natural Gas Association of America
(INGAA). He was majority counsel to the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources
where he worked on enactment of the Natural Gas Wellhead Decontrol Act of 1989 and the Energy
Policy Act of 1992. From 1993-1997 he served on the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.
Santa is a graduate of Columbia University School of Law and Duke University Trinity College of
Arts and Sciences.
Carol Freedenthal
Principal
Jofree Energy
Carol Freedenthal is principal in the Houston energy forecasting and consulting company, Jofree
Energy Consulting. Jofree is well-known for its energy products’ price forecasting and information
services to assist management in business development, regulatory and litigation purposes. He has
been a contributing editor for Pipeline & Gas Journal since 1996. He is a chemical engineer with a
degree from Georgia Tech.
Adam Sieminski
Administrator
U.S. Energy Information Administration
(EIA)
Adam Sieminski was sworn in on June 4, 2012, as the eighth administrator of the U.S. Energy
Information Administration (EIA). EIA is responsible for collecting, analyzing, and disseminating
independent and impartial energy information to promote sound policy-making, efficient markets,
and public understanding of energy and its interaction with the economy and the environment.
From March 2012 to May 2012, while awaiting U.S. Senate confirmation as EIA administrator,
Sieminski served as senior director for energy and environment on the staff of the National Security
Council. From 1998 until March 2012, he served as a senior energy analyst for Deutsche Bank,
working with the Bank’s global research and trading units. Sieminski has served in leadership
positions for the International Association for Energy Economics and the affiliated U.S. Association
for Energy Economics. He also has acted as a senior adviser to the Energy and National Security
Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a nonpartisan policy think tank in
Washington.
Lori Traweek
Senior Vice President and COO
American Gas Association
Cheryl Campbell
Vice President of Gas
Xcel Energy
Cheryl Campbell is Vice President of Gas at Xcel Energy and is responsible for employee and
public safety, system performance, reliability and compliance across eight states.
She earned degrees in Chemical Engineering, Business, and a master in Finance. Campbell’s
education and expertise led her to gain experience in engineering design, supply and storage
management, operations, rates, regulatory, strategic planning, and marketing. She serves on
numerous boards and committees, including the Department of Transportation’s Technical Pipeline
Safety Standards Committee.
Tal R. Centers, Jr., P.E.
Vice President
Safety & Gas System Integrity
CenterPoint Energy
Tal Centers works for CenterPoint Energy, Inc. headquartered in Houston, Texas. He is the Vice
President of Safety & Gas System Integrity. His responsibilities include gas LDC engineering,
system integrity, gas control, measurement, safety, technical training, portable CNP and LNG, as
well as environmental.
Centers holds a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering and an Executive MBA, both from
Texas A&M. He is a licensed professional engineer in the state of Texas.
He serves as Chair of the SGA Distribution Operations and Engineering Section Managing
Committee, AGA 3rd Vice Chair Managing Committee and is currently on the Itron Advisory
Board.
Jorge Cardenas
Vice President of Asset Management and Centralized Services
PSE&G