Professor Elam holds  a BBA, MBA, & PhD from the University of Texas at Austin.  He has taught at UT Permian Basin, Texas State University, and Texas A & M University San Antonio since  2003. He is a member and faculty adviser for SA TXCPA, SA Institute of Management Accountanats, and SA Institute of Internal Auditors as well as a Board Member of SA IIA. He has presented numerous Continuing Educatoin seminars for all three groups.  He is also a member of  SA Financial Executives International.

His research interest regards the way social mood generates social events. This is true of popular culture  such as music and movies as well as accounting regulation.  He spoke at the Social Mood Conference Sponsored by SI in atlanta GA in  2016.  He arranged for the first collection donation by the Socionomics Institute SI to the TAMUSA library in  2017.  He accompanied the Socionomics Research team presemting at the University of Warwick in Coventry England.

He was named TXCPA's statewide Outstanding Accounting Educator for Small Universities in 2021. He received special recognitioni (plague) frm SA TXCPA 2020-2021 for Continuding Education. He and his wife Christy enjoy San Antonio while caring for a Jack Russell and Terrier Mix.