Mr. Carter is the founder of Black Stone and is currently its Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer. Prior to the formation of Black Stone, Mr. Carter served as Managing General Partner of several predecessors to the Company, including W.T. Carter & Bro (1987-1992) and Black Stone Energy Company (1980-Present). W.T. Carter & Bro. was a family partnership that owned timber and mineral interests in East Texas since the late 19th century. In 1980, Mr. Carter founded Black Stone Energy Company, which serves as Black Stone’s operating and exploration subsidiary, while Black Stone Minerals holds the fee and royalty interests.

From 1975 to 1979, Mr. Carter worked for Texas Commerce Bank in Houston, Texas. During his first two years he worked in the Finance and Budget Planning areas and subsequently served a year as Executive Assistant to the bank’s Chief Executive Officer. After completing his appointment as Executive Assistant, Mr. Carter spent the subsequent two years as a Lending Officer in the Energy Department.

Mr. Carter holds M.B.A. and B.B.A. degrees from the University of Texas at Austin. He currently sits on the boards of Carrizo Oil & Gas, Inc., The Lawrenceville School, Episcopal High School in Houston, St. Edward's University in Austin and the Ripley Foundation.

Ms. Vanderhider serves as President and Chief Operating Officer. She is responsible for all activities of the company including daily operations, capital formation activities, all aspects of finance and accounting, business development, information technology, risk management and human resources. She works closely with Mr. Carter in further defining Black Stone’s strategic business plan. Prior to Black Stone, Ms. Vanderhider served as Chief Financial Officer for EnCap Investments, a leading institutional funds manager. Ms. Vanderhider also served in a variety of financial positions, most recently as Chief Accounting Officer for Damson Oil Corporation, a publicly traded oil and gas company. Ms. Vanderhider began her career in public accounting with Deloitte & Touche.

Ms. Vanderhider received a B.B.A. in Accounting and Finance from the University of Texas at Austin and is a Certified Public Accountant. She serves on the board and is the current President of the Houston Producers' Forum and is a member of the Independent Petroleum Association of America, Texas Independent Producers and Royalty Owners Association, Houston Energy Finance, the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, the Texas Society of Certified Public Accountants and the Association for Financial Professionals. She also serves on the Advisory Council of the Mays Business School at Texas A&M University.

Mr. Carroll joined Black Stone in September 2004 and currently serves as Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. He is responsible for the finance and accounting functions, credit relations, portfolio valuation, investor reporting and planning and analysis. Prior to Black Stone, Mr. Carroll was employed by El Paso Corporation in several positions, including Natural Gas Trader and Manager of Financial Planning & Analysis. Prior to El Paso, Mr. Carroll served in various positions at several Houston-based energy companies.

Mr. Carroll is a Certified Public Accountant and received a B.B.A. in Accounting and a B.B.A. in Business Analysis from Texas A&M University. He received his M.B.A. from Rice University. He is a member of the Houston Producers’ Forum and the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants.

Mr. Dorn worked with Black Stone from 2002 to 2004 and returned in 2008. He serves as the Senior Vice President of Business Development with responsibilities for Land and Legal, Land Administration and Business Development. Mr. Dorn has worked at Touradji Capital Management, LP and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. in the Investment Banking Division.

Mr. Dorn received a B.B.A. from the University of Texas at Austin and an M.B.A. from Columbia University.

Mr. Harmon joined Black Stone in November 2004 and currently serves as Senior Vice President of Exploration. His responsibilities include evaluating and overseeing all of Black Stone’s exploration programs, analyzing and recommending future geological trends for Black Stone, as well as providing a geological assessment for all new venture acquisitions. Prior to joining Black Stone, Mr. Harmon held various positions with Pure Resources LLC and Unocal Corporation from 2001 to 2004. From 1990 to 2001, Mr. Harmon worked as a Senior Geologist with IP Petroleum Company generating and reviewing Gulf Coast prospects. He began his career with First Energy Corporation as a Geologist.

Mr. Harmon received his B.S. degree in Geology from Louisiana Tech University. He is a certified professional Geologist in the State of Texas and is a member of the Houston Geological Society.

Mr. Robinson is Vice President of Land and Legal, responsible for leasing and other land matters. Prior to joining Black Stone in 2004, Mr. Robinson worked as a Senior Attorney for Sonat Exploration Company from 1991 to January 2000, when Sonat merged with El Paso Corporation. He remained at El Paso from January 2000 until December 2004. While at Sonat and El Paso, Mr. Robinson handled various downstream and midstream activities. Prior to Sonat, Mr. Robinson worked in private law practice in Shreveport, Louisiana for 12 years.

Mr. Robinson received his J.D. degree from Louisiana State University in 1978. He is licensed to practice law in the states of Louisiana and Texas.

Mr. Skov joined Black Stone in November 2009 as Chief Information Officer. He is responsible for all information technology and mapping operations. Prior to Black Stone, Mr. Skov was Vice President Information Technology with Duke Energy and DCP Midstream, Duke Energy’s joint venture with ConocoPhillips. Prior to Duke Energy, he resided in Canada and held positions including CIO of Newfoundland Power Inc. and a number of business and technology senior leadership roles with Union Gas Limited.

Mr. Skov received Bachelor of Commerce and M.B.A. degrees from the University of Windsor in Ontario, Canada.

Mr. Tom is Senior Vice President of Engineering. He is responsible for all aspects of engineering including reserve reporting, capital budgeting and new opportunity evaluation. Prior to joining Black Stone, Mr. Tom worked as a Senior Vice President of Engineering at Guaranty Bank responsible for evaluating oil and gas properties to determine borrowing bases and at JP Morgan Chase & Co. During nine years with Damson Oil Corporation, Mr. Tom served as Manager of Reserves for corporate and partnership assets. Prior to joining Damson Oil, Mr. Tom worked for The Superior Oil Company and for Getty Oil Company.

Mr. Tom received a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Arizona in 1974. He is a thirty-five year member of the Society of Petroleum Engineers.