University appoints three new members to board of trustees

University leadership announced the addition of David Bell, Erin Brogdon and Brant Bryan to the board of trustees on Oct. 29, 2024. Their appointments bring the number to 22 men and women serving as Harding’s governing body. 

"David, Erin and Brant are outstanding additions to the Harding board," said Charles Ganus, chairman of the board of trustees. "They bring a broad variety of talents combined with demonstrated strategic thinking skills. All are deeply committed to Harding and its mission and have been strong supporters through the years."

David Bell is CFO and treasurer for Castellum, Inc., a federal government contractor listed on the NYSE-American. He is responsible for all of the company’s financial functions including accounting, audit, treasury and corporate finance. His career spans more than 30 years in financial management, public accounting and business leadership. Prior to joining Castellum in 2022, Bell completed 28 years in the public accounting profession with Arthur Andersen and Deloitte, including 14 years as an audit partner and six years in Deloitte’s national office as an accounting consultation partner and as chief of staff. He also served as a board member and chair for the Friends of the National Zoo. Bell earned a Bachelor of Business Administration in accounting from Harding in 1992 and is a certified public accountant licensed in Illinois and Virginia and a member of the American Institute of CPAs, Illinois CPA Society and the Virginia Society of CPAs. He and his wife, Carmen, live in Vienna, Virginia, and have four daughters.

Erin Brogdon’s professional background is as an attorney who currently consults organizations on education and engagement strategies. Her aim is to empower leaders to transform conflict and leverage dialogue to navigate cultural changes. She earned a Bachelor of Business Administration in accounting from Harding in 2003, a Juris Doctor from University of Arkansas at Little Rock’s Bowen School of Law in 2006 and a Master of Arts in Christian Practice from Duke University’s Divinity School in 2021. Brogdon previously was a partner at Wright Lindsey and Jennings law firm where she practiced business and nonprofit law and was also in-house counsel at Alltel Communications. She has served as executive director of City Connections and campaign manager for Chief Justice John Dan Kemp’s successful supreme court bid in 2016. She has been a member of the board of directors at Central Arkansas Christian Schools since 2014. She and her husband, Jay, live in North Little Rock, Arkansas, and have three sons.

Brant Bryan, a founding leader of Fairways Equities and Cresa Global, is a specialist in creative real estate financing solutions through leases, purchases, joint ventures and other financial structures. Having seen hundreds of real estate finance transactions, he has been called a “technical expert who thinks outside of the box in ways that there is no box.” He has provided both financial and real estate leadership for projects of major corporations throughout the country totaling more than $10 billion. Bryan has also facilitated private equity placements for more than 30 entrepreneurial start-up ventures. With extensive background in corporate real estate, real estate finance and real estate accounting, he is a frequent speaker for real estate and financial organizations and has been quoted as an authority in these matters by the New York Times, CFO, National Real Estate Investor and The Wall Street Journal. Bryan earned a bachelor’s degree in accounting from Harding and an MBA from Harvard University Business School. He currently serves as a trustee and treasurer for Heritage21 and chairman of Heartbeat. He has served as an adjunct professor at Harding and Abilene Christian University. He and his wife, Melita, live in Dallas and have four children and 15 grandchildren.