The Oklahoma Military Academy Alumni Association has announced the recipients of its Hall of Fame and Distinguished Alumni Awards for 2009.
The recipients will be honored during the annual Oklahoma Military Academy Reunion on June 5-6 at Rogers State University in Claremore.
The Hall of Fame and Distinguished Alumni Awards represent the highest honors that can be bestowed upon an alumnus of the Oklahoma Military Academy. Currently, more than 1,200 alumni remain active with the OMA Alumni Association.
This year, nearly 250 OMA alumni, spouses and guests will return to RSU’s “College Hill” to attend a variety of reunion activities including the Hall of Fame and Distinguished Alumni Awards Ceremony on June 6.
Inducted into the OMA Hall of Fame will be Hugh Miller of West Chester, Penn.
This year’s OMA Distinguished Alumni are Tom Anderson of Olympia, Wash., who also is serving as the reunion adjutant; Dr. William Daugherty of Savannah, Ga.; and Dr. Ralph Kennedy (Ken) Johnston of Belen, N.M.
“We are pleased to present the Hall of Fame and Distinguished Alumni Awards to these men who have brought honor to the Oklahoma Military Academy through their many years of dedicated service to their communities and country,” said RSU President Dr. Larry Rice.
The OMA Student Lounge in the new Centennial Center on the RSU campus in Claremore will be dedicated during the reunion. During the ceremony, 10 alumni donors who made it possible to name the lounge in honor of OMA will be recognized. The lounge provides a place for RSU students to study and relax in the Centennial Center, as well as learn about the history of the OMA, said Dr. Danette Boyle, RSU vice president for development.
OMA reunion events start Friday, June 5, with an 18-hole alumni golf tournament, followed with ping-pong and pool tournaments in the afternoon. The opening reception is Friday evening on the Centennial Center Terrace. On Saturday, June 6, the day’s activities will start with a morning formation and cadet memorial service, followed by the annual Hall of Fame and Distinguished Alumni awards ceremony, alumni luncheon, dedication of the OMA Student Lounge, followed by the dinner and dance are scheduled for Saturday evening.
Following is more information about the honorees.
Hugh E. Miller, Hall of Fame
Hugh Miller retired following a long and distinguished career in the global chemical and pharmaceutical industries. Following graduation from OMA High School in 1953, he attended Rice University in Houston, graduating in 1958 with a B.A. and a B.S. in chemical engineering. He later attended the Harvard International Senior Managers Business Program. He was commissioned in 1958 as a 2nd Lieutenant in the Corps of Engineers and served in the Army and Army Reserves for 10 years, completing his service as a Captain. His business career started in sales to the automotive industry and evolved to international sales. In 1966 he was transferred to Europe where he became a top executive with Europa Division of Imperial Chemical Industries, a United Kingdom based company, and one of the largest chemical companies in the world during the 1970s and 80s. In 1979 he returned to the U.S. and became president of Stuart Pharmaceuticals, ICI’s pharmaceutical operation in the U.S. and Canada. Miller retired from ICI as Vice Chairman of ICI Americas. He has most recently served as Chairman of the Board of MCI Pharma and as a Director of Wilmington Trust Company and Verizon-Delaware.
Thomas (Tom) W. Anderson, Distinguished Alumnus
Tom Anderson, of Olympia, Wash., spent four years at OMA, graduating from junior college in 1955 as the Corps Commander and a Distinguished Military Graduate. Following graduation from OMA, he attended the University of Oklahoma and subsequently enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1958. He attended the Field Artillery Officer Candidate School at Fort Sill, Okla., and was commissioned a 2nd Lieutenant in October 1959.
He completed a B.S. degree from Cameron University in 1973; graduated from the Army’s Command and General Staff College, Fort Leavenworth, Kan., in 1974; and completed an MBA from Northwest Missouri State University, Maryville, Mo., in 1976. His awards include three Army Commendation Medals, two Meritorious Service Medals, Bronze Star Medal and the Legion of Merit. His military career included duty tours in Germany, Vietnam and Korea. After 21 years of continuous active duty, he retired from the Army as a Lieutenant Colonel while stationed at the Presidio of San Francisco and later moved to Olympia, Wash. Since retiring from the Army he has traveled extensively to Europe, Russia, China, Australia and New Zealand. He served as the 2008 Reunion Adjutant and was asked to form a steering committee in conjunction with the 2009 Reunion, an organization-building role for which he was well suited, with the goal of maximizing attendance at the 2009 Centennial Reunion.
Dr. William J. Daugherty, Distinguished Alumnus
Bill Daugherty, a 17-year veteran Central Intelligence Agency operations officer, is an author and sought-after speaker. As an outstanding OMA cadet and honor student, he was the school’s nominee to the U.S. Naval Academy, Annapolis. He served eight years in the U.S. Marine Corps – with enlisted and commissioned service – completed flight school and flew combat missions in Vietnam.
He completed a B.A. in social science at the University of California, and a Ph.D. in government from the Claremont Graduate School. Daugherty was subsequently recruited by the CIA. During his first CIA duty tour while stationed at the American Embassy in Tehran, Iran, he was taken hostage in 1979. He was among 52 hostages held prisoner for 444 days. His awards include the State Department’s Medal of Valor, the CIA Exceptional Service Medal, the Foreign Service Association’s W. Averill Harriman Award, and a two-time recipient of the CIA Exceptional Performance Award.
Dr. Daugherty is presently a professor of government at Armstrong Atlantic State University, in Savannah, Ga., the author of two books, eight journal articles and book chapters on Iran and intelligence.
Dr. Ralph Kennedy (Ken) Johnston, Distinguished Alumnus
Ken Johnston was described in a 1989 San Angelo, Texas, newspaper article as an “Earth-bound space pioneer,” an apt description considering his resume, which includes groundbreaking work training the Apollo Astronauts in 0-G (weightless environment) and vacuum chambers. He helped train the first crews to land on the moon how to fly the Lunar Module spacecraft. Johnston joined the U.S. Marine Corps in 1962 and served during the Vietnam War. He began a 17-year career with NASA in 1966 as a test pilot with the Apollo Program and later on the Space Shuttle. Subsequently he worked at Boeing for 14 years on the Peace Keeper (MX Missile) launch systems and as a flight instructor on Boeing 737 aircraft. Ken received his Doctorate of Divinity in 1985, and became an ordained minister. Earlier he earned multiple undergraduate degrees including a B.S. in aerospace engineering. He is currently a NASA volunteer, promoting the accomplishments and missions of our Space Program as a Solar System Ambassador.