Walter Ulrich is active throughout Houston's technology and entrepreneurship community. In addition to his leadership of the HTC, he serves as Chairman of the Gulf Coast Center for Innovation and Commercialization. He has received many awards, most recently the NASA Silver Achievement Medal presented by Dr. Ellen Ochoa, Director of Johnson Space Center. Appointed by Governor Rick Perry in 2006, Walter Ulrich served two years as one of 17 founding members of the Texas Emerging Technology Fund Committee that was responsible for awarding $200 million to foster the commercialization of innovative emerging technology. Prior to joining the Houston Technology Center, he was CEO of several technology companies and an executive with two major global management consulting firms. Early in his career, he was responsible for the development of the first successful email service and he founded a major regional IT leader. He has a master and bachelor's degree from Stevens Institute of Technology and served proudly in the US Marine Corps.