In December, Charles McCrary was named the new chairman of the board of Regions Financial Corp. and Regions Bank. McCrary, ’73 mechanical engineering, is the former president and CEO of the Alabama Power Co. He headed Alabama Power from 2001-14, part of a 40-year career with the company and its parent, Southern Company. He served as Regions’ lead independent director since 2014. He also served on the board of directors of AmSouth Bancorporation, a predecessor to Regions, from 2001-06.

McCrary is a current at-large member of the university’s board of trustees and a member of the State of Alabama Engineering Hall of Fame. He is also the namesake of the university’s McCrary Institute for Cyber and Critical Infrastructure Security.