John Sharp
14th Chancellor of The Texas A&M University System
Assumed office
August 15, 2011
Preceded byMike McKinney
35th Comptroller of Texas
In office
January 3, 1991 – January 2, 1999
GovernorAnn Richards
George W. Bush
Preceded byBob Bullock
Succeeded byCarole Keeton Strayhorn
Railroad Commissioner of Texas
In office
January 6, 1987 – January 22, 1991
GovernorBill Clements
Preceded byClark Jobe
Succeeded byLena Guerrero
Member of the Texas Senate
from the 18th district
In office
November 20, 1982 – January 13, 1987
Preceded byJohn Wilson
Succeeded byKen Armbrister
Member of the Texas House of Representatives
from the 40th district
In office
January 9, 1979 – November 20, 1982
Preceded byJoe Wyatt Jr.
Succeeded byAlex Moreno
Personal details
Born
John Spencer Sharp

(1950-07-28) July 28, 1950
Placedo, Texas, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
Spouses
Charlotte Han
​
​
(m. 1978; died 2020)​
    Diana Atchison
    ​
    (m. 2023)​
    Children2
    EducationTexas A&M University (BA)
    Texas State University (MPA)
    Military service
    Allegiance United States
    Branch/service United States Army
    Years of service1972–1976
    RankSecond Lieutenant
    UnitUnited States Army Reserve

    John Spencer Sharp (born July 28, 1950) is an American Democratic politician from Texas, who has served since 2011 as the chancellor of the Texas A&M University System. From 1991 to 1999, he was the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. From 1979 to 1987, he was a member of both houses of the Texas State Legislature. From 1987 to 1991, he was one of the three members of the Texas Railroad Commission. In 1998 and 2002, he was the Democratic Party's nominee for Lieutenant Governor of Texas.

    Sharp is also a principal in the Austin office of the Dallas-based Ryan & Company, a tax consulting firm. In 2005, he was appointed as chairman of the Texas Tax Reform Commission.

    Background

    The son of an oil field worker and a school teacher, Sharp grew up in the small farming community of Placedo in Victoria County[1] along the Texas Gulf Coast. In 1972, Sharp earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science from Texas A&M University in College Station, where he was a member of Squadron 6 in the Corps of Cadets and was elected Student Body President.[2] Upon graduation, he was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the United States Army Reserves. He belongs to American Legion Post 76 in Austin.

    In 1973, started working as an analyst for the Texas Legislative Budget Board.[2]

    In 1976, Sharp received a master's degree in Public Administration from Texas State University in San Marcos while working full-time in Austin with the Legislative Budget Board.[3] In 1978, Sharp returned to Victoria, Texas, where he opened a real estate firm with partner and former County Commissioner Gene Martin and became a successful small business owner.

    Texas politics

    In 1978, Sharp was elected to the Texas House of Representatives from the 40th District in Victoria and was later named "Outstanding Freshman" by Texas Monthly. Just a few weeks after his re-election for a third full two-year term in the general election of 1982, he ran and won a special election runoff and served a full four-year term in the Texas Senate. He was appointed to the powerful Senate Finance Committee. In 1986, he was elected to the Texas Railroad Commission.

    In 1985, while in the state legislature, Sharp proposed a law restricting abortion rights in Texas.[4] Then-State Treasurer Ann Richards helped kill the bill.[5] When he ran for statewide office, Sharp moderated his anti-abortion views.[4]

    In 1990, Sharp was elected as the 35th State Comptroller of Public Accounts for the State of Texas. He was re-elected in 1994. In 1998, he did not seek a third term as comptroller but instead lost the race for lieutenant governor to Rick Perry, 50-48 percent. Sharp ran for lieutenant governor again in 2002, but was defeated 52-46 percent by David Dewhurst, then the Land Commissioner.

    Upon taking office as Comptroller, Sharp began working to fulfill his pledge to "make government work more like our most successful businesses." During his eight years as Comptroller, Sharp established the Texas Performance Review (TPR), an ongoing audit on state government. During Sharp's two 4-year terms as Comptroller, the TPR identified more than $8.5 billion in taxpayer savings and changed the way government does business through the Council on Competitive Government.[6] Other innovative programs created and implemented by Sharp during these eight years included:

    • Texas School Performance Review: An outgrowth of TPR, this program has shown public school districts how to save more than $350 million, while keeping scarce education funds in the classroom where they belong and easing the burden on local taxpayers.
    • Texas Window on State Government:[7] The official website for the Texas State Comptroller's Agency was a Sharp innovation during his time as Comptroller. This website – whose stated purpose was to maximize the ability of citizens to engage with the Comptroller's Agency and to access public information more easily – was the first of its kind in the United States, and has served as a model for other state agencies across the country.
    • The Texas Tomorrow Fund: A pre-paid college tuition plan that allows over 80,000 Texas families to lock in the future costs of their children's college at about what they would pay today.
    • Family Pathfinders: Sharp's 1995 welfare reform plan formed the heart of some of the most sweeping changes to public assistance in Texas history. It also led to another of Sharp's innovations—Family Pathfinders, which links welfare families with local civic clubs, congregations and businesses to help get jobs and leave the public assistance rolls behind. The Family Pathfinders website for Tarrant County, Texas (as an example) is here:[8]
    • The Lone Star Card: First recommended by Sharp in 1991. This program spearheaded the nationwide switch from paper food stamp coupons to computerized bank-type cards and dramatically reduced fraud and abuse in the federal program.

    As Comptroller, Sharp also commanded the most successful state lottery start-up in U.S. history. With only 189 employees (compared to California's 1,000 and Florida's 750), Sharp's team put their first tickets on sale seven weeks early and set first-day, first-week, and first-year world sales records. By the time he turned the games over to the new Texas Lottery Commission,[9] the state was $1 billion richer – and Sharp had returned $81 million in unspent administrative funds. Sharp's blueprint for the Texas Lottery was later used by several American states as well as Mexico.

    In 2005, Sharp was asked to head an education task force – called the Texas Tax Reform Commission – charged with preparing a bi-partisan education plan for the state. The special session convened on April 17, 2006. Sharp accepted the offer and removed himself as a potential candidate for governor in 2006. The task force issued its final plan several months later, and the legislature adopted it.[10] Sharp was later nominated by the Dallas Morning News for "Texan of the Year".[11]

    Senate campaign

    On December 4, 2008, Republican U.S. Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison announced the creation of an exploratory committee for the Texas governor's race in 2010. Had she won the governorship, Hutchison would have been required to vacate her Senate seat by January 2011. If she were to stay in the Senate and not run for governor, she would have been up for re-election to the Senate in 2012. On December 8, 2008, Sharp became the first Democrat to announce his intention to run for this Senate seat, regardless of Hutchison's decision. Unlike several other candidates for the office, Sharp did not create an exploratory committee but immediately began raising funds and campaigning in 2009.[12]

    Texas A&M University System

    On August 15, 2011, John Sharp was appointed by Governor Rick Perry and the A&M Board of Regents to be chancellor of the Texas A&M University System. At the time, Sharp had never worked in academia.[2] All the members of the Board of Regents that voted to hire Sharp were appointed by Perry.[13]

    Sharp outsourced the student dining program, landscaping, maintenance, and custodial services to private companies, which prompted protests for university employees who feared losing their jobs.[2] Sharp leased land owned by Texas A&M to private developers.[2]

    On March 7, 2023, a guest lecture by Texas A&M University professor Joy Alonzo at the University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) criticized Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick's role in the opioid crisis. Shortly afterward, Patrick contacted Sharp about Alonzo.[14][15] Alonzo was placed on administrative leave immediately, and was formally censured by UTMB. The investigation by Texas A&M found no evidence of wrongdoing, and Dr. Alonzo's leave was ended two weeks later.[14]

    Leadership

    As chancellor of The Texas A&M University System, Sharp has been involved with multiple initiatives:

    • New Partnership Puts Texas A&M on Top, Chancellor Says[16]
    • Texas A&M System and GlaxoSmithKline receive U.S. Government approval to establish influenza vaccine facility in Texas[17]
    • Texas A&M Deal to Outsource Campus Services Formalized[18]
    • Texas A&M System Awarded National Center for Innovation[19]
    • Texas A&M University officially acquires Texas Wesleyan University law school[20]
    • Texas A&M System Launches EmpowerU Website[21]
    • Texas A&M lays accountability path for graduation rates, cost effectiveness[22]
    • Texas A&M System implementing outsourcing at other campuses[23]
    • Texas A&M University System Saving $10 Million of Healthcare[24]
    • Adding “Texas A&M” To More A&M System Agencies[25]

    Personal life

    In 1978, he married Charlotte Han. They have a son, Spencer, and a daughter, Victoria. Charlotte died in December of 2020.[26]

    He owns a 1,600-acre ranch 30 minutes from College Station where he raises cattle and goats.[2]

    Sharp has received numerous awards, including the only "Texas Quality Award"[27] ever presented to a governmental agency. Texas State University presented Sharp with the "Distinguished Alumnus Award" in 1996, where he also taught a course on Texas state government for several semesters in the early 2000s.[28]

    References

    1. ↑ Roell, Craig H. (June 15, 2010). "Placedo, TX". www.tshaonline.org. Retrieved September 18, 2018.
    2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Hardy, Michael (July 25, 2017). "Country Revival". Texas Monthly. Retrieved July 25, 2023.
    3. ↑ "Legislative Budget Board". www.lbb.state.tx.us. Retrieved September 18, 2018.
    4. 1 2 Russell, Jan Jarboe (March 1, 1994). "John the Knife". Texas Monthly.
    5. ↑ Ratcliffe, R. G. (September 7, 2017). "John Sharp, the State's Fixer in Chief, Comes to the Rescue After Harvey". Texas Monthly.
    6. ↑ "Texas Council on Competitive Government". Archived from the original on January 6, 2009. Retrieved December 21, 2008.
    7. ↑ Accounts, Texas Comptroller of Public. "Home Comptroller.Texas.Gov". www.window.state.tx.us. Retrieved September 18, 2018.
    8. ↑ "Family Pathfinders of Tarrant County". Archived from the original on February 3, 2009. Retrieved December 22, 2008.
    9. ↑ Lottery, Texas. "Texas Lottery". www.txlottery.org. Retrieved September 18, 2018.
    10. ↑ "Final Report of the Texas Tax Reform Commission" (PDF).
    11. ↑ "DMN "Texan of the Year" Nomination # 4: John Sharp". Dallas Morning News.
    12. ↑ "Former Comptroller Sharp to seek U.S. Senate seat". Houston Chronicle.
    13. ↑ "As A&M chancellor and hurricane recovery czar, John Sharp balances two intensely personal jobs". The Texas Tribune. September 13, 2017. Retrieved August 3, 2023.
    14. 1 2 Barragán, Kate McGee and James (July 25, 2023). "Texas A&M suspended professor accused of criticizing Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick in lecture". The Texas Tribune. Retrieved July 25, 2023.
    15. ↑ Barragán, Kate McGee and James (August 2, 2023). "Suspended Texas A&M professor denies saying Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick believes overdose victims "deserve to die"". The Texas Tribune. Retrieved August 8, 2023.
    16. ↑ Tribune, The Texas (June 19, 2013). "New Partnership Puts Texas A&M on Top, Chancellor Says". Retrieved September 18, 2018.
    17. ↑ "Texas A&M; System and GlaxoSmithKline receive U.S. Government approval to establish influenza vaccine facility in Texas". February 1, 2014. Archived from the original on February 1, 2014. Retrieved September 18, 2018.
    18. ↑ Fullhart, Steve. "A&M Deal to Outsource Campus Services Formalized". Retrieved September 18, 2018.
    19. ↑ "Texas A&M System Awarded National Center for Innovation". February 2, 2014. Archived from the original on February 2, 2014. Retrieved September 18, 2018.
    20. ↑ report, Eagle staff. "Texas A&M University officially acquires Texas Wesleyan University law school". Retrieved September 18, 2018.
    21. ↑ Tribune, The Texas (October 29, 2012). "Texas A&M System Launches EmpowerU Website". Retrieved September 18, 2018.
    22. ↑ "A&M lays accountability path for graduation rates, cost effectiveness". October 29, 2012. Retrieved September 18, 2018.
    23. ↑ Reed, Allen. "Texas A&M System implementing outsourcing at other campuses". Retrieved September 18, 2018.
    24. ↑ "Texas A&M University System Saving $10 Million of Healthcare - ABC 40 KRHD-TV - Bryan/College Station News and Weather". February 22, 2014. Archived from the original on February 22, 2014. Retrieved September 18, 2018.
    25. ↑ "Adding "Texas A&M" To More A&M System Agencies". August 2, 2012. Retrieved September 18, 2018.
    26. ↑ "Charlotte Han Sharp Passes After Lengthy Illness". December 15, 2020. Archived from the original on August 1, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
    27. ↑ "Texas Quality - Glass Hummingbird Feeders - Window Hummingbird Feeder". Texas Quality. Archived from the original on January 9, 2019. Retrieved September 18, 2018.
    28. ↑ "Home - Alumni Association". www.txstatealumni.org. Retrieved September 18, 2018.
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