Barbara Calhoun Cargill
B.S.Ed ’82, Conroe, Texas
Career Experience
Barbara Calhoun Cargill served for 16 years on the Texas State Board of Education (SBOE), retiring in 2020. A former biology teacher, she is the founder and director of WOW Science Camp (est. 1994), a faith-based program that has taught character education and hands-on science to thousands of children. A graduate of Texas Woman’s University (M.S.S.E. ’92), Cargill is president of Cargill Consulting & Training and is a Texas Early Childhood Registered Trainer.
Board Experience
Cargill has served as an alumni-elected member on Baylor’s Board of Regents since 2022. During her four elected terms on the Texas SBOE, she was twice appointed by Governor Rick Perry to serve as chair. She created the Board’s Student Hero program to recognize students who demonstrate integrity through service. Cargill serves on the boards of Habitat for Humanity of Montgomery County and the Interlinc Family Foundation and chaired the Woodlands Methodist School Board.
Awards and Honors
In 2020, Governor Greg Abbott conferred upon Cargill the Commission of the Yellow Rose of
Texas for exceptional community service. Recognized as a Scholar by the American Enterprise Institute’s Conservative Education Reform Network, Cargill also has been the recipient of the “Thanks to Teachers” National Excellence Award, the Exceptional Support of Americanism Award from Daughters of the American Revolution and the Lifetime Faithful Servant Award given by Texas Values.
Baylor Philanthropy
In 2021, Cargill and her husband, Terry, B.B.A. ’82, funded the Barbara and Terry Cargill Endowed Scholarship to support students in the School of Education. Cargill is a Baylor Women’s Council of Houston member and a Mom’s Club past member (proud mother of a third-generation Bear).
Church/Christian Mission Affiliations
Cargill and her husband are members of The Woodlands Methodist Church, where she has been an administrative board member and volunteers with senior meal delivery and food and book collections for children. They also support Young Life and Family Legacy.