Articles

Humanities Texas welcomes our new board members! The Humanities Texas Board of Directors formulates policy, approves programs and projects, reviews grant applications, participates in fundraising, and promotes organizational activities. Directors are selected for knowledge of or involvement in the humanities. Humanities Texas strives for geographical and ethnic representation and for balance between the academic and public spheres.

The Humanities Texas Board of Directors meets in the Julius and Suzan Glickman Room at the Byrne-Reed House in April 2018.
Virginia Mithoff

Virginia "Ginni" Mithoff returns to the Humanities Texas board of directors, having served previously from 2012–2017. She received her BS in elementary education from The University of Texas at Austin and attended the University of Houston for graduate school. After retiring from her teaching career, she began volunteering and serving on boards for various organizations, including the Houston Ballet Guild, the Houston Museum of Natural Science, Harris County Hospital District Foundation, and many others. She currently serves on the School of Education Foundation Advisory Council of The University of Texas Development Board and The University of Texas School of Public Health Advisory Council of The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston Development Board. She is the 2019-20 chair-elect of UTHealth Houston and will begin serving as chair of that organization in 2021-22. Ginni and her husband Richard have lived in Houston for forty-five years. They have two children—Michael and Caroline—and five grandchildren.

Virginia Mithoff.

Nancy Painter Paup

Nancy Painter Paup manages and directs business, real estate, and ranching interests in Texas. In 2013, she was appointed to the Board of Regents of Texas Woman's University (TWU), the largest public university primarily for women in the United States, and elected Vice-Chair in 2018. A member of The Philosophical Society of Texas, she currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Texas State Historical Association (TSHA) and the Executive Advisory Committee of The Handbook of Texas Women. She served on the Board of Trustees at Schreiner University and the Advisory Board of the Center for Teaching Excellence at Texas A&M University. She has both Master’s and Bachelor’s degrees from TWU, along with post-graduate work in development and leadership. She has raised funds for the arts, higher education, and historical preservation. She spearheaded the membership and corporate development programs at the Amon Carter Museum of American Art in Fort Worth, was involved with the recent completion of a $50M capital campaign at Schreiner University, and was co-chair of a previous state-wide campaign for TSHA. She and her husband, Ted, have two daughters and five grandchildren.

Nancy Painter Paup.

Gina M. Spagnola

Gina M. Spagnola is president and CEO of The Galveston Regional Chamber of Commerce. In that capacity, she has helped develop and lead a strategic planning process that transformed the Chamber, played a critical role in the rebuilding of the City of Galveston’s business community following Hurricane Ike, and created an education committee within the Chamber to discuss educational priorities in the community. This committee is the one venue representing every school and education-based organization in the Galveston area, from the University of Texas Medical Branch to East End Preschool. Gina serves as the County Director of Lemonade Day Galveston County, in addition to her service on the national board of directors. She helped create Galveston’s Celebrating Women: Mind Body Spirit Conference to celebrate, inspire, and motivate women to strive for the best in both their personal and professional lives. Gina serves on Galveston ISD's Educational Foundation Board as chair, The Grand 1894 Opera House Board, and the Port of Galveston’s Port of Call Committee. She’s a recipient of the Christie Mitchell Beachcomber Award, recognizing individuals and entities who promote Galveston Island, the Grand Opera House’s Community Enrichment Award, and the Paul Harris Fellow Distinguished Award from the Rotary Foundation of Rotary International.

Gina M. Spagnola.

Alan Tully

Alan Tully is Eugene C. Barker Centennial Professor of American History at The University of Texas at Austin and was chair of the history department at UT Austin from 2002 until 2014. He received his PhD from Johns Hopkins University. A scholar of early American history, he has authored and co-edited several books including William Penn's Legacy: Politics and Social Structure in Provincial Pennsylvania 1726–1755 (Johns Hopkins University Press), Forming American Politics: Ideals, Interests, and Institutions in Colonial New York and Pennsylvania (Johns Hopkins University Press), and, with Professor Bob Olwell, Cultures and Identities in Colonial British North America. He is currently working on a book on the politics of declamation in early America. Alan and his wife, Deborah Bennett, have two grown daughters.

Alan Tully.