About

Dr. Baum is the founder and president of the Royalty Owner Institute (ROI), a non-profit organization that provides education and support to royalty owners in Texas and throughout the United States. After completing a Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin – Madison, John has enjoyed three careers: college professor, business executive, and entrepreneur. He began his first career as a college professor serving on the business school faculties at Purdue University and the University of Texas at Austin. In order to gain “real world” experience in the business world, John joined Texas Instruments as the Chief Learning Officer of the company. He worked closely with senior managers and executives to develop more effective leadership skills. John later returned to academics as a professor in the Neeley School of Business at Texas Christian University. While at TCU, he taught energy management courses at the undergraduate and MBA levels and also served as the Executive Director of the Tandy Center of Executive Leadership. John later became the Associate Director of the TCU Energy Institute.

Following his retirement from TCU in 2012, John began his entrepreneurial career. He had developed a passion for educating royalty owners. None of the universities or consulting firms in the oil patch were providing educational programs that were designed specifically for royalty owners. He designed and developed the Royalty Owner Programs and began offering them under the sponsorship of the TCU Energy Institute. Almost 2,000 royalty owners have completed one or more of the programs since their inception. In 2018, he formed the Royalty Owner Institute to house the programs and provide education and support to the estimated 2 million royalty owners in Texas and 15 million in the United States.

John and his family live in Corinth, Texas. They have four grown children and four grandchildren who brighten their lives and keep them busy. John owns a ranch in West Texas that conducts cow-calf operations and provides a nice change of pace from city life.
He is blessed to be a royalty owner on his ranch.

Ashley is the program director and coordinator for the Royalty Owner Programs. She also manages the Help Desk to assist participants and prospects with registration and program attendance. She is actively involved in making sure that participants have a positive and productive experience in the programs.

After receiving her degree in communications from Stephen F. Austin State University, Ashley has 20 years of professional experience in the communications industry. She is a graduate of the prestigious American School of Protocol. Ashley also received her Beef Quality Assurance Certification from Texas Beef Council as well as attended Texas A&M Ag Extension cattle classes. She has been an international spokesperson for Fortune 500 companies, director and trainer for Teen Modeling/ Personal Development programs in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area. Ashley has assisted both large and small corporations with special events, promotions, and training. She has previous experience as a television anchorperson, radio personality and collegiate teaching assistant. Her studies and experiences have given her the opportunity to live outside the United States and travel the world.

Ashley is the proud mother of two daughters, Lauren and Lilly. She is actively involved in her community as well as her daughters’ activities. She serves on the PTA Board of Directors. She volunteers at her children’s schools, her church, and mission outreach programs.

Sallie manages all of the logistics for the Royalty Owner Programs, including the venues where the programs are conducted, food and beverages, program materials, and the comfort and wellbeing of the participants during the programs. Her primary goal is to provide a friendly and comfortable environment for the participants so they can learn as much as possible during the programs.

Sallie grew up in Roswell, New Mexico. After receiving her degree in education from the University of Arkansas, Sallie began her career as a teacher in a private school. She moved to the Dallas area and accepted a management position with Delta Airlines where she trained reservation agents in sales and customer support. She then moved to the oil industry with SEDCO Inc., a large off-shore drilling company founded by former Texas governor Bill Clements. Sallie managed the international travel of executives and rig personnel in off- shore drilling operations. She continued her career in the oil industry by becoming the logistics/travel manager for FINA Oil & Chemicals, a major oil & gas company with operations around the world. In addition to travel management, she was the primary meeting and event planner for the corporation. Sallie is very experienced in managing the logistics of the Royalty Owner Programs and she works hard to make sure that the participants have a meaningful and pleasant learning experience.

Sallie is the matriarch of the family and is heavily involved in the lives of her grandchildren. She is very proud of them and gets involved in many of their activities. She knows how to set a great table for holiday and special events.

David Wallace received a B.B.A. in Petroleum Land Management in 1978 from the University of Texas at Austin, studied law at Cambridge University (Emmanuel College), the University of Richmond, and graduated from South Texas College of Law. He was admitted to the State Bar of Texas in 1982 and is Board Certified in Oil, Gas and Energy Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization in 1989. He has also served as the Sutton County Attorney since 1985.

His law practice is focused on representing surface and royalty owners in oil, gas & mineral management. He is also a well-known litigator in protecting the rights of mineral owners in the courtroom. He is a former Council Member for the Oil, Gas & Mineral Law Section for the State Bar of Texas and a life fellow of the Texas Bar Foundation. He was also an Executive Director on the Mohair Council of America and he has been a director of NARO Texas.

David is a prolific author, presenter, and teacher on a wide range of topics that are relevant to surface and royalty ownership. He is a frequent presenter at conferences sponsored by the National Association of Royalty Owners (NARO) and the State Bar of Texas. He has been an invited presenter at numerous energy industry conferences and events. David has a passion for teaching and advising royalty owners so they can take full advantage of their mineral assets.

David and his wife Beth, who is also a practicing attorney, live in Sonora, Texas. David and Beth have two children, Wilson, an oil and gas attorney & trust officer and Warren a graduate of TCU’s Ranch Management School and the Texas Tech Law School. David is a fourth-generation rancher on the family ranch near Sonora, Texas where he raises cattle, sheep, and goats. David is also a proud royalty owner.

Glen is a successful attorney and business owner in Abilene, TX. He received a BA from Texas A&M University, an MBA from Texas Tech University, and a Doctor of Jurisprudence and Master of Laws (Taxation) from Southern Methodist University. Glen’s law practice is weighted toward the interests of mineral and royalty owners in West Texas and around the State of Texas. In addition to oil & gas minerals management, Glen is a recognized expert in estate planning and tax mitigation.

Prior to forming his own law firm in 2009, Glen was an attorney and shareholder in two large law firms in Dallas and Abilene. He acquired extensive hands-on experience in all aspects of oil & gas operations and minerals management, including lease negotiations, working interests, joint operating agreements, title curative, estate and tax planning, real estate, and wealth management. Glen has a special passion for serving royalty owners who want to acquire the knowledge and experience to level the playing field when they interact with oil and gas companies.

Glen is a born teacher and serves as a very popular instructor in oil and gas operations at McMurry University in Abilene. He was appointed by Governor Rick Perry to be a member of the Texas Farm and Ranch Council in 2006 and previously served as the President of the Texas Wildlife Association. He is an Eagle Scout and was named as a Top Young Lawyer in Texas by Texas Monthly in 2006. Glen has published several legal articles, including “Saving the Family Farm and Ranch,” which was published in Texas Wildlife. Also, Glen wrote the Texas Wildlife Association’s amicus brief to the Texas Supreme Court in the seminal water law case, Guitar Holding Co., LP v. Hudspeth County Underground Water District.

When he is not practicing law, Glen operates his family’s ranch near Throckmorton, Texas, which conducts commercial hunting and cow/calf operations. Most importantly, Glen loves spending time with his family at the ranch, at the ballpark, or on one of their regular “Family Nights” in Abilene. Hands down, Glen’s proudest accomplishment is his marriage to Misti and his two teenage children, William and Ella Grace.