Oklahoma A&M Board of Regents elects Callahan as Board Chair

The Oklahoma A&M Board of Regents announced the election of Regent Jarold Callahan to the position of Board Chair. Callahan’s term begins July 1. He succeeds Regent Trudy Milner in this position. He was appointed to the board by former Gov. Mary Fallin in 2016 and again in 2018. Regent Callahan is president of Express Ranches, one of the nation’s largest purebred and commercial ranching operations headquartered in Yukon, Oklahoma. He is also the co-owner and operator of Callahan Cattle Company and XCEL Feedyard, LLC. Callahan grew up in northeastern Oklahoma on a diversified family farm and cattle operation. Farming and ranching quickly became his passion. He earned an Associate of Arts degree from Northeastern Oklahoma A&M College where he was the Outstanding Freshman and Sophomore in Agriculture. He then received a Bachelor of Science degree in animal science from Oklahoma State University and successfully competed on the OSU livestock judging team as a student, winning national honors. Callahan went on to serve as a faculty member and livestock judging coach at both NEO A&M and OSU. At both institutions, he was recognized as an exceptional teacher and coach. His livestock judging teams won national championships and he was recognized as National Coach of the Year on multiple occasions. The Oklahoma A&M Board of Regents has the supervision, management, and control of five institutions including OSU Connors State College, Langston University, Northeastern Oklahoma Agricultural and Mechanical College and Oklahoma Panhandle State University.Callahan died unexpectedly on Dec. 23, 2023.