NOTABLE ALUMNI 

Page Keeton (1909-1999)

Dean Keeton was an attorney and dean of the University of Texas School of Law for a quarter century. He graduated first in his class at the University of Texas School of Law in 1931 and earned a Doctor of Juridicial Science from Harvard University in 1936. “Dean” Keeton, as he was nicknamed, is often credited with making UT Law one of the best law schools in the country. The road north of the 40 Acres is named for him. He is also the father of Carole Keeton – former Austin Mayor, Texas Railroad Commissioner, Comptroller of Public Accounts, and gubernatorial candidate.

Robert Dedman (1926-2002)

Robert Dedman was the founder and Chairman of ClubCorp. He served in the Navy, received a bachelor’s degree from UT Austin and a law degree from Southern Methodist University. After working as a lawyer, Dedman founded Country Club, Inc. later known as ClubCorp in 1957. He served 2 terms as Chairman of the Texas State Highway and Public Transportation Commission. Mr. Dedman was a generous philanthropist donating to his alma mater and a street on the UT campus bears his name. The Southern Methodist University Robert Dedman Law School bears his name.

Harley Clark (1936-2014)

Clark, who was the university’s head cheerleader in 1955 and student body president in 1957-58, publicly introduced the now world famous “Hook ’em Horns” hand sign during the 1950s. He was a member of Texas Cowboys, the Friar Society, and served as President of the Tejas Club. Following graduation from UT Law, he became a successful trial lawyer in the 1960s and 1970s. In 1977, Gov. Dolph Briscoe appointed him to be a judge for the state’s 250th Judicial District Court. His most notable decision was in the Edgewood Independent School District case in 1987. He ruled that the state’s system of financing public schools violated the Texas Constitution because of its funding disparities between property rich and property poor school districts. The decision was upheld by the Texas Supreme Court, 9-0.

Frank Cooksey

Frank Cooksey served as Mayor of Austin from 1985 to 1988. He holds a bachelor, masters and law degree from UT Austin. Frank was student body president and a member of the Friars during his time at UT. During the 1960s, Frank Cooksey served as a trial attorney in the Civil Rights Division of the Justice Department, where he worked on voting rights cases in Mississippi and Alabama.

Julius Glickman

Julius Glickman is the former managing partner of Glickman, Carter & Bachynsky, LLP and an award-winning Houston attorney. He earned his bachelor of arts degree in Plan II and law degree from the University of Texas at Austin. As an undergraduate, Julius served as Student Government president from 1962-1963 and was a member of the Friars and the Silver Spurs. Glickman is known for his philanthropic endeavors and generous giving to the Houston Symphony, Texas Historical Foundation, the YMCA of Great Houston Area, and UT Austin.

Joe Krier

Joe Krier currently serves on city council for San Antonio’s District 9. From 1987 through 2007, he served as President and CEO of The Greater San Antonio Chamber of Commerce. Joe was a member of the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board from 1994 to 1999. While at The University of Texas, Joe served as the student body president and was a member of the Friar Society. He is married to former State Senator Cyndi Taylor Krier.

Rex Tillerson

Rex Tillerson is currently the United States Secretary of State. Prior to this, he served as the CEO of ExxonMobil from 2006 to 2016. A native of Wichita Falls, Texas, Rex earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Civil Engineering at the University of Texas at Austin before joining Exxon Company, U.S.A. in 1975. He is the former Chairman of the American Petroleum Institute, former President of the Boy Scouts of America and a Texas Exes Distinguished UT Austin alumnus.

Alex Cranberg

Mr. Cranberg is Chairman of Aspect Holdings, LLC.  He graduated Summa Cum Laude from The University of Texas at Austin in 1977 with a BS in Petroleum Engineering and received an MBA from Stanford University in 1981.  After leading General Atlantic Partners’ oil and gas investment activity from 1981-1992, Mr. Cranberg founded Aspect Energy.  Aspect has drilled over 500 exploration wells and made many oil and gas discoveries in Texas and Louisiana, Belize, Hungary, and Kurdistan. Mr. Cranberg currently serves on the Board of Regents for the University of Texas System.

Steve Poizner

Steve Poizner served as California Insurance Commissioner from 2007 to 2011 and was a 2010 California Republican gubernatorial candidate. Poizner is a successful Silicon Valley high tech entrepreneur, founding and successfully selling SnapTrack, Inc., Strategic Mapping, Inc, and EmpoweredU. In 2001, following privately held SnapTrack’s sale for $1.0 billion to Qualcomm, Poizner served a year as a White House Fellow in the National Security Council. Starting one week before the September 11 attacks, Poizner held the position of Director of Critical Infrastructure Protection, and was involved in developing Homeland Security programs relating to cybersecurity and emergency response communication protocols.

Austin Ligon

Austin Ligon is the co-founder and former CEO of CarMax. Mr. Ligon served as the President of CarMax Inc. from 1995 to May 2006 and its Chief Executive Officer from October 2002 to May 2006. He is actively involved in several startups, including Gazelle.com, Redfin, CarTrade India, and MPrep Kenya. He has been Non Executive Chairman of Gazelle, Inc., since April 2011. He serves as a Director of Second Rotation, Inc., Redfin Corporation and Rev.com, Inc. He holds a Bachelors degree in Plan II and Economics from UT Austin as well as a MBA from the Yale School of Management. He previously served on the governing board for the University of Virginia.

Shaarik Zafar

Shaarik H. Zafar was appointed as the Special Representative to Muslim Communities at the U.S. Department of State in July 2014. He is responsible for driving Secretary Kerry’s engagement with Muslim communities around the world on issues of mutual interest and to advance of U.S. foreign policy. Prior to that he served as Director for Global Engagement at the White House National Security Council (NSC). Shaarik is a graduate of the Plan II Honors Program at the University of Texas at Austin and the University of Texas School of Law. He received the 2011 Outstanding Young Texas Ex Award, which recognizes alumni under the age of 40 who have made significant achievements in their careers and service to the University. 

Other Notable Alumni:

Trevor Pearlman

Royce Lamberth

Michael Gillette

Jackson C. Hinds

Tarun Bobbili