Meet the Board

Chad and Kellie Schmidt live in Cypress, TX and have been married for 30 years and have two amazing children:  Paige and Zach (Zach is the better child). Kellie is a mammographer in the Houston area and Chad is a principal in Tomball ISD. Chad and his brother Ty founded the program in honor of their mom to make a difference in their communities. Both Chad and Kellie actively support all students throughout their projects at the barns and at the shows.  

The MSAOP Barn is located at their home in Cypress.  

Dr. Ty Schmidt is an Associate Professor in Animal Science at the University of Nebraska - Lincoln. Ty’s research focus at the University of Nebraska - Lincoln is focused on improving the health and wellbeing of pigs within the commercial production system. Ty and his wife (Amy) and their two kids (James and Charlee) reside in Eagle, NE. Ty is a founding board member and is instrumental in providing support and resources through his connections in his field and expertise. 

Rick and Chris Windham live in Houston, TX and have been married for more than 30 years. Rick and Chris have two incredible sons: Sam and Jake and their entire family has supported this program and our journey from the very beginning. They have been and continue to be our biggest supporters and have helped with everything from the incorporation, direct care of the animals, to critical animal health support. Rick is a Deputy Fire Chief-Operations for The Woodlands Township and Chris is an ER Nurse Practitioner for Memorial Hermann Health System in Houston.  

Paige Miller has been a part of MSAOP since the beginning and joined the board as of 2022. She began raising pigs in 2013 and raised a total of 10 pigs in her high school career. Following her graduation, she continued working with students raising livestock by providing showmanship training because she is a superior showman to Chad Schmidt. Paige completed her M. Ed from ACU and is currently a special education teacher in Tomball ISD.  Paige and her husband Josh, live in Tomball.