OSU Alumni Association Honors Distinguished Alumni Award Recipients
Tuesday, October 16, 2007
Dr. Marlene Strathe, Interim OSU President and System CEO (left), and Russell Bass,
OSU Alumni Association President and CEO (right), congratulate the 2007 Distinguished
Alumni Award Recipients. (L-R) Professor Dr. Teravuti Boonyasopon, Donald D. Humphreys,
Tom Seth Smith, Rhonda Hooper, Don Peters and Gene R. Nichol.
Professor Dr. Teravuti Boonyasopon graduated with his Ed.D. from Oklahoma State University in 1983. He currently serves as Chairman of the Thai-French Innovation Center at King Mongkut’s Institution of Technology in North Bangkok.
In 1977, Boonyasopon joined the center as a lecturer. Later, he took three years for doctoral study at OSU. After returning to Thailand in 1983, Boonyasopon became Head of the Graduate Study Division before working his way up to dean, director, vice president and now president of the institution.
Boonyasopon has several awards and honors including: Outstanding Thailand Vocational Educator of the Year, Outstanding University President of Thailand, the Prime Minister’s Award for Best Academic Management and Development of Thai Universities, and Officer in the French Ordre National du Merite by declare of the President of the Republic of France.
Boonyasopon remains connected with the OSU community through the Alumni Association and his former professors. He frequently returns to the campus to speak with members of the OSU Thai Student Association, and to visit former professors and friends. He also recommends OSU to individuals wishing to study abroad and hosts visiting OSU administrators, professors, students and OSU alumni in the Bangkok area. He was influential in establishing the Thai-OSU alumni chapter and recently is helping to develop a database of OSU Thai graduates so they may remain connected to their alma mater.
The OSU spirit was passed down to his daughter, Ink, who recently received her Master’s degree at Oklahoma State.
Rhonda Hooper graduated from OSU in 1978 with a bachelor’s degree in journalism, emphasizing advertising. She is President/CEO of Jordan Associates, one of the leading full-service advertising/communications agencies in the Southwest.
Hooper began her professional career with Ackerman & McQueen working in both the creative and account service departments. She moved to the client side, as Director of Advertising for Technical Oil Tool Corporation, and joined Jordan Associates in 1986.
Hooper serves on the Board of Directors for the American Association of Advertising Agencies (AAAA), has served on the AAAA Executive Leadership Council, is in the current Leadership Oklahoma XXI class, and a Leadership OKC, Class XII alumnus.
While a student at OSU, Hooper was a SGA Senator, on Mortar Board and a member of Delta Delta Delta sorority. She was honored as an OSU Top Ten Senior and Redskin Congratulate. In 2002, Hooper was chosen as an Outstanding Alumna in the College of Arts & Sciences and remains active with her alma mater by serving OSU in many capacities. She is a member of the OSU Alumni Association Leadership Council, OSU-OKC President’s Advisory Board, a previous OSU Foundation Board member and has served on various search committees. Hooper is also a past national president of the OSU Alumni Association Board of Directors.
Hooper contributes to her community by currently serving on the Executive Committee of the Greater Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce and is Vice Chairman of the OKC Convention & Visitors Commission. She serves on the boards of the OKC Boathouse Foundation, YMCA and assisted in founding the Child Abuse Response & Evaluation Center. Hooper is also on the OK Centennial Horse Show Board and is a member of the American Morgan Horse Association.
Donald D. Humphreys, a Tulsa native, earned his bachelor’s degree in Industrial Engineering and Management from OSU in 1971.
After graduation, Humphreys served in the U.S. Army before obtaining his M.B.A. at the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. Then, in 1976, he began a long and distinguished career at ExxonMobil. Throughout his years there, Humphreys has managed a variety of responsibilities. He started as a systems analyst and after assignments in Texas and Louisiana he transferred to corporate headquarters in New York as a Senior Financial Advisor. Following numerous increases in responsibility, Humphreys was elected to Senior Vice President and Treasurer of the Exxon Mobil Corporation in 2006.
Humphreys is a member of Financial Executives International, the American Petroleum Institute and the Conference Board’s Council of Financial Executives. He recently served on the Financial Accounting Standards Advisory Council.
Humphreys remains active and connected to his alma mater by serving on the Board of Governors for the OSU Foundation. He will be inducted into the Spears School of Business Hall of Fame in November 2007.
He and his wife of thirty-seven years, Cathey, have three daughters: Megan, Melissa and Mary.
Gene R. Nichol received highest honors with his philosophy degree from Oklahoma State in 1973 and went on to obtain his J.D. in 1976 from the University of Texas. He currently serves as president of the College of William and Mary located in Williamsburg, Virginia.
In 1976, he worked as an attorney for Ely, Guess & Rudd Law Firm, then became active in educating youth as a professor at West Virginia University. Nichol spent a few years as a political writer and in 2001 made his way back to the university setting. He taught at various universities across the country and served as Dean of both the University of North Carolina and the University of Colorado law schools.
In 2003, Nichol won the American Bar Association’s Edward R. Finch Award. He has also been elected into the American Law Institute, the American Bar Foundation Fellows and was named the Outstanding Law School Dean of the Year by Equal Justice Works.
This former OSU varsity football player has been recognized as a Distinguished Alumnus in the College of Arts & Sciences.
He and his wife, Glenn, have three children: Jesse, Jennifer and Soren.
Nichol speaks highly about the experiences he had at OSU and how those opportunities influenced and prepared him for his career path.
Don Peters received his bachelor’s degree in Soils from the Agronomy Dept., Oklahoma A&M in 1951. He spent his career with Phillips Petroleum Co. and subsidiaries, retiring after 49 years, 43 of which were in Plastics. Peters was the Principal Engineer of Blow Molding at Phillips Chemical Company.
Peters is the inventor and/or co-inventor of 36 patents. His most well-known inventions involve moving sections to blow mold irregularly shaped parts such as one-piece lids and handles of water coolers that people use every day. Peters also worked extensively with Phillips customers helping develop new products and providing technical service.
Peters was elected into the International Plastics Academy prestigious Hall of Fame and is one of 36 living members. He has been awarded three Lifetime Achievement Awards for his career accomplishments. He has authored and presented many technical papers and conducted seminars worldwide. Peters is a member of the Society of Plastics Engineers (SPE), a “Fellow” of the SPE and an Engineer Fellow Emeritus of Phillips.
Peters served in the 38th Infantry Division Battalion Medical Detachment during WWII. For his service, he was awarded the Combat Medical Badge, the Philippine Liberation Ribbon with a Bronze Star, three Overseas Service Bars and other honorable awards.
While at Oklahoma A&M, he was a member of the varsity football team and the Agronomy Club. Peters is a Distinguished Alumnus in the College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources.
Peters and his wife, June, have two children: Scott and Nancy, both graduates of OSU.
Tom Seth Smith, CEcD, graduated with a bachelor’s degree in technical education in 1977. Currently, he serves as President and CEO of Rural Enterprises of Oklahoma, Inc., a position he has held for 18 years.
Smith also serves as chairman of REI New Markets Investment, LLC, which offers federal and state tax credit programs.
A recent study done by the Economic Impact Group of REI’s impact over the past 25 years reported that REI has contributed more than $1 billion in Oklahoma output, $350 million in labor income and created more than 9,800 jobs.
Smith has served in a variety of leadership roles in the economic development field. He worked with Red Ark Development Authority and served as Assistant for Economic Development for Congressman Wes Watkins in Washington, D.C.
Smith was elected to the Southern Economic Development Council and served as president. He received the Rural Leadership Award at the National Rural Economic
Development Association Convention and is a member of the Governor’s Economic Development Team, and the International Economic Development Team. He contributes to his community as a member of the Board of Directors for the Durant Area Chamber of Commerce and actively participates in economic development programs locally and throughout the state.
Smith has provided opportunities and resources for OSU students as a guest lecturer and by implementing a partnership between OSU and REI.
Smith and his wife, Cynthia, have 6 children: Paxton, Zach, Jacob, Chris, Gabe, and Noah.
A special thank you to the OSU Alumni Association’s Corporate Partners who so graciously provided support for this event: ConocoPhillips, Harrison Gypsum Co., and the OSU Foundation.