mculbertson@ccredc.com

Mike Culbertson is President and CEO of the Corpus Christi Regional Economic Development Corporation, primarily responsible for the economic development effort in the Coastal Bend. He has a staff of five working to attract and retain companies to the region.

Mike graduated from King High School in Corpus Christi, after which he attended the University of Texas where he received his BS degree in Aerospace Engineering. Upon graduation he was commissioned in the United States Navy and received his Navy Pilot’s wings of gold at NAS Kingsville. He was deployed on five cruises, amassed over 3,500 flight hours and over 600 carrier arrested landings on ten different aircraft carriers including USS Lexington flying the A-6E Intruder. When he left the Navy, he attended the University of Houston where he graduated with his MBA.

Mike is a C.P.A. and has held various financial positions in industry from Controller to Chief Financial Officer. He joined the Corpus Christi Economic Development Corporation in 2009. He has achieved the professional designation of “Development Finance Certified Professional.”

He is married to Dr. Debi Manning, Ph.D. of Corpus Christi, retired professor from Texas A&M University – Corpus Christi.

Sarah Tindall, COO, has managed Investor Relations and External Affairs for the CCREDC since 2015, successfully doubling the private investment in the organization by engaging local companies in the organization’s mission to bring jobs and investment to the region.

She moved to Corpus Christi in 2005 from her hometown of New Orleans and has worked at the Corpus Christi Caller Times, American Heart Association, and as a development consultant for many local non-profits. She graduated from the University of Dallas with a BA in English and Journalism and has two grown sons with her husband Brad.

Sarah is an active volunteer across the Coastal Bend; she currently serves as Chair of the Incarnate Word Academy board of directors and as a board member for the Del Mar College Foundation, USS Lexington Museum, and the My Town Our Future campaign.

Robert Kelley is CCREDC’s Vice President of Marketing & Attraction for the organization, managing the organization’s programming to secure new capital investment and jobs for the region.

Robert grew up in Corpus Christi, Texas, graduating from Richard King high school in 1988. He attended college at Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia and graduated in 1992 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Secondary Education. He began his professional career working for a private corporation in Houston managing corporate recognition and incentive programs for Fortune 500 clients, after which he moved back home to Corpus Christi where he spent 15 years in business development for Reliant Energy's clients in the greater Texas markets. He then spent the past eight years as a consultant in the power market before joining CCREDC.

Robert and his wife Debbi have two daughters in college. Robert enjoys all forms of outdoor activities including sailing, fishing, and hunting, is a past commodore for the Corpus Christi Yacht Club, and enjoys this opportunity to grow the economic success of his hometown.

C. Michelle Unda joined the CCREDC in December 2024 as the Vice President of Existing Industry and Regional Development. In her role, Michelle manages our Business Retention and Expansion program, engaging with existing companies in the region, identifying their operational opportunities and challenges while strategically managing projects to drive job creation, payroll growth, and capital investment, as well as overseeing Manufacturing Day and other CCREDC events and activities. 

Michelle previously served as director of communications for the local chamber of commerce, later moving to industry where she spent approx. 15 years working in HR/Public Affairs for a midstream company. She served as the 2023 Winter commencement speaker for Del Mar College, was named 2019 Rising Star by Texas A&M Univ-Kingsville Javelina Alumni Association, 2019 Alumnus of the Year by Leadership Corpus Christi Alumni Association (graduated from LCC XXXVI), March 2019 Mi Casa Su Casa Honoree by the United Corpus Christi Chamber Foundation, 2015 Distinguished Alumni by Del Mar College, and was a 2010 and 2014 Corpus Christi Under 40 Honoree. She enjoys volunteering for our community in numerous capacities; currently serving as a board member for Workforce Solutions of the Coastal Bend (PR Chair) and the Coastal Bend Community Foundation (Grants Chair) and is a team member of the St. Patrick Church OCIA program.

Michelle holds a master's degree from the University of St. Francis - Fort Wayne, Indiana in Organizational Leadership as well as a bachelor's degree in communications from Texas A&M University-Kingsville and two associates degrees from Del Mar College in journalism & liberal arts. She and her husband have one young son and two spoiled labrador retrievers. She and her family enjoy gardening, camping, off-roading, and hiking.

Randy L. Almaguer, Compliance Officer, was born and raised in Corpus Christi, Texas for most of his life. He began his professional career at the Corpus Christi Army Depot in 2010 and excelled in his work. Randy was recognized for several awards: Certificate of Achievement in Fiscal Year 2018 and Achievement Medal for Civilian Service in 2015, both for exceptional performance and dedicated service provided to the Corpus Christi Army Depot.

In February of 2020, Randy accepted an opportunity with the City of Corpus Christi for a position in the Finance & Economic Development Department as a Senior Management Analyst and assisted in accomplishing over $21 million dollars in Capital Improvements, Economic Development and Job Creation/Retention across the City of Corpus Christi during COVID through 2021. He was the liaison between Corpus Christi Business and Job Development Corporation Boards (Type A/B), Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone Boards (TIRZ #2-5) and various Executive Level Team personnel with the City of Corpus Christi.

Randy graduated with a master’s in public administration in 2017 from Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi (TAMUCC), with an emphasis in Public Management. In addition, Randy also attended the University of Texas-Brownsville as a member of the Scorpion Baseball Team from 2001-2003.

Randy and his wife Leslie have 4 daughters. Randy enjoys watching baseball at all levels and enjoys any excuse to get out to his ranch in Alice, Texas during the cooler months of the year.

Whitney Winkler is the Administrative Director at the CCREDC. She manages the day-to-day needs of the office and supports the staff in their various projects. She specializes in graphic design, video editing, and social media management.

While in college, Whitney was the Marketing Assistant for the Gulf Coast Humane Society where she managed social media accounts, created marketing materials, coordinated fundraising events and advocated for animal welfare. Whitney is a native to the Coastal Bend, a cat person, and a devout Catholic.

Her favorite pastime is meeting friends weekly to play tabletop roleplaying games such as Dungeons & Dragons, Call of Cthulhu, City of Mist, and many others. Additionally, she is a hobbyist. She enjoys painting both digitally and with oils and her favorite books are Richard Adams’ Watership Down as well as Dan Wells’ John Cleaver series. She attended Del Mar College and holds an associate degree in digital media.