The Hildebrand Department of Petroleum and Geosystems Engineering honored six alumni with its Distinguished Alumni Award at a ceremony and dinner Friday, Nov. 8. The award is given annually to UT PGE alumni who are leaders in the oil and gas industry — educators, executives, innovators and entrepreneurs with unmatched industry expertise.

This year’s recipients reflect UT PGE’s commitment to educating the world’s best petroleum and subsurface engineers and equipping them with the exceptional skills needed to provide sustainable, affordable and reliable energy for the world:

H. Kent Brock
BSPE 1980

Kenneth Bowen Ford (1917–2007)
BSPE 1940

C. Susan Howes
BSPE 1982

Horacio Daniel Marin
MSPE 1994

R. Graham Whaling
BSPE 1977

Sanzhar Zharkeshov
BSPE 2010
Rising Star Award

Distinguished Alumni recipients are selected by a committee of UT PGE alumni, including past award honorees. This marks the 14th year UT PGE has given the Distinguished Alumni award, its highest recognition to graduates of its top-ranked undergraduate graduate petroleum engineering programs.

Dig Deeper

• • Meet past Distinguished Alumni Award recipients.
  • Read more about the Distinguished Alumni Award.
  • Join our UT PGE LinkedIn alumni groups in Austin, Dallas, Denver, Houston and Midland.