Wm. Eugene “Gene” Powell 

Founder and President, The Powell Companies, Inc.

Raised in Weslaco, Texas, Mr. Powell is a native of the Rio Grande Valley. He earned a Bachelor's degree in finance at The University of Texas at Austin while on a full athletic scholarship playing football under Coach Darrell K Royal. He later earned a Master's degree in finance from U. T. Austin before returning to the Valley.

In 1983 he moved to San Antonio, Texas, to become the President of The Quincy Lee Company, which, at the time, was the largest commercial real estate development company in San Antonio.

In 1987 Mr. Powell formed The Powell Companies real estate brokerage company and, with his partner, Mr. Laddie Denton, formed Bitterblue, Inc. Today Bitterblue, Inc. is one of San Antonio’s leading real estate developers having produced such notable projects as Lincoln Heights, The Quarry, Shavano Park, Inwood, Alamo Crossing, Longhorn Quarry, Lookout Canyon, Kinder Ranch, Bentley Manor, and Rogers Ranch.

In 2004, Mr. Powell co-founded the medical software company AirStrip Technologies with Cameron Powell and Trey Moore, and he has been the CEO since its inception. AirStrip’s technology is used by hospitals nationwide to transmit wave form data in real time from the hospital to physicians' cell phones anywhere in the world that offers a cell connection. AirStrip's initial product was designed to be used by the hospitals' labor and delivery units and physicians delivering babies, and the product line has been expanded to include the transmission of critical patient data in cardiology, the ICU, and operating rooms.

Mr. Powell was recently appointed to a six-year-term on The University of Texas System Board of Regents by Governor Rick Perry in February 2009.  Regent Powell was confirmed by the Senate on April 1, 2009, and took the oath of office on April 3, 2009.

Mr. Powell is a member of the Real Estate Council, the Greater San Antonio Builders Association, the San Antonio Hispanic Chamber, and the Greater Chamber of Commerce of San Antonio. He has served on the Executive Committees of the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and Los Compadres de la Missiones as well as the Executive Board of the Witte Museum in San Antonio. In addition, he has chaired numerous successful fundraising events for various nonprofit organizations in San Antonio.