Established in 1957, the Distinguished Engineering Graduate Award is the highest honor that the Cockrell School bestows on its alumni. The five distinguished engineering graduates for 2017 are innovators, entrepreneurs and highly respected leaders in their industries and communities. We honor them for their dedication and generosity, and we are proud to call them Cockrell School alumni.
Learn more about this year's inductees:
Eugene H. Dawson
B.S. CE 1957
Co-Founder, Pape-Dawson Engineers Inc.
Eugene H. Dawson co-founded Pape-Dawson Engineers lnc. in 1965. The firm is now one of the largest in Texas, with more than 450 employees in Austin, Houston, Dallas, San Antonio and Fort Worth.
Samuel G. Dawson
B.S. CE 1983
Chief Executive Officer, Pape-Dawson Engineers Inc.
Samuel G. Dawson is chief executive officer of Pape-Dawson Engineers Inc. Under Dawson’s guidance, the San Antonio-based civil engineering firm has grown into one of the most respected firms in Texas.
Edward S. Hyman
B.S. ME 1967
Chairman, Evercore ISI Group Inc.
Ed Hyman is chairman of Evercore ISI Group Inc., a global independent investment banking advisory firm. He also leads Evercore ISI’s economic research team.
Justine E. Johannes
M.S. ChE 1990, Ph.D. ChE 1994
Director of the Stockpile and Weapon Product Realization Center, Sandia National Laboratories
Justine Johannes serves as director of the Stockpile and Weapon Product Realization Center at Sandia National Laboratories.
Eugene B. Shepherd
B.S. PE 1981
Chief Executive Officer, ATX Energy Partners
Gene Shepherd is a founder and the chief executive officer of ATX Energy Partners LLC. Prior to that, Shepherd was a founder and chief executive officer of Brigham Resources LLC from 2013 to 2017.
