Academy of Distinguished Graduates

2004 Academy Inductees

Major General Michael C. Kostelnik USAF(Retired)

From the very beginning of his career Major General Michael C. Kostelnik USAF(Retired) has demonstrated an ever increasing level of responsibility and accomplishment.

Kostelnik served as an instructor pilot and flight examiner, as well as a test pilot in the F-4, F-15, and more than 60 other types of aircraft. He has held a variety of positions in the Air Force, including Commandant of the Air Force Test Pilot School at Edwards Air Force Base, California; Director of Special Programs in the Office of the Secretary of Defense at the Pentagon; and Commander of the USAF Air Armament Center at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida.

In May 2002, Kostelnik was appointed Deputy Associate Administrator for International Space Station and Space Shuttle, a newly created position within the Office of Space Operations, NASA Headquarters in Washington, D.C. His responsibilities include program safety, performance and schedule requirements for the International Space Station and the Space Shuttle programs.

Kostelnik is the recipient of numerous awards including the Defense Distinguished Service Medal, the Air Force Distinguished Service Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster, Legion of Merit, and the Meritorious Service Medal with two Oak Leaf Clusters.

Dr. G.P. "Bud" Peterson

Bud Peterson started teaching in the Department of Mechanical Engineering in the fall of 1985.

In June 1993, Peterson was appointed Head of the Department of Mechanical Engineering. At the same time he also served a year as Program Director of the Thermal Transport and Thermal Processing Program at the National Science Foundation. Peterson was appointed Executive Associate Dean and Associate Vice Chancellor of Engineering in 1996. In these positions, he was responsible for approximately 400 faculty members and 9,000 students. In July 2000, Peterson was appointed Provost and Officer of the Institute at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. He is responsible for the academic affairs of the entire institute with an enrollment of approximately 10,000 students and over 400 faculty members.

Peterson is an international authority on heat pipe technology, and he is known for his contributions in the development and application of heat pipe technology for space and electronic cooling applications. He has published many journal articles and book chapters, a widely used textbook, and holds eight patents in the general field of heat pipes. Peterson’s research efforts have been recognized by the numerous awards he has received at both local and national levels. He is a Fellow of both the ASME and AIAA. Some of his most notable awards are the AIAA Thermophysics Awards, the ASME Heat Transfer Memorial Award, the ASME Ralph James Award for Outstanding Contributions to the Petroleum Division, and the ASME Gustus Larson Memorial Award.

Academy of Distinguished Graduates

The Academy of Distinguished Graduates is made
up of the following members:

Richard Alexander ‘65	Arthur McKnight ‘31
Leslie L. Appelt ‘41	Hugh D. McMillan, Jr. ‘46
Retd General Joseph W. Ashy ‘62	Reid P. McNally, Jr. ‘65
David G. Barker ‘68	Raymond Marlow ‘53
Ray M. Bowen ‘58	Charlie A. Mast ‘51
William B. Boyd ‘45	Harvey O. Mohr ‘58
Douglas E. Broussard ‘44	Wililam E. ‘Ed’ Nelson ‘51
Jack E. Brown ‘46	Donald H. Niederer ‘53
Charles Castine ‘70	Ozden Ochoa ‘77
Aaron Cohen ‘52	C. E. ‘Pat’ Olsen ‘23
Don H. Davis, Jr. ‘61	James R. Partridge ‘58
Orval C. ‘Cliff’ Davis ‘42	Thomas C. Paul ‘62
Howard E. Decker ‘44	G. Paul Pepper ‘54
Bannister W. Farquhar, Jr. ‘57	G. P. ‘Bud’ Peterson ‘85
L. S. ‘Skip’ Fletcher ‘58	Herman L. Philipson, Jr. ‘45
James H. Foster ‘49	Michael J. Plank ‘83
Morris Foster ‘65	Henry O. Pohl ‘56
Don Fowler ‘66	Robert L. Poland ‘42
Joe R. Fowler ‘68	Thaddeus H. Sandford ‘62
Louis S. Gee ‘44	Oscar W. Schuchart ‘43
Fred Goldsberry ‘68	Edwin D. ‘Ned’ Snead ‘51
Robert H. Gruy ‘69	Charles W. ‘Bill’ Soltis ‘55
William T. Guy, Jr. ‘40	Karl J. Springer ‘57
Robert C. ‘Bud’ Hagner ‘48	Charles R. Steele ‘56
C. Melvin Harrison ‘52	Harry J. Sweet ‘56
William M. Hays, Jr. ‘64	Ed Szymczak ‘61
Charles Jackson ‘50	David Tees ‘
Peter E. Jacobson ‘55	Lee P. Thompson ‘41
Michael C. Kostelnik ‘69	Bill Tompkins ‘65
Arnold N. Levine ‘67	J. Mike Walker ‘66
Earl Logan, Jr. ‘47	Barton B. Wallace ‘47
Larry V. Macicek ‘71	Jack R. Woolf ‘45
William C. McCord ‘49	Oscar S. Wyatt ‘45
Richard L McGannon ‘50