Vernon "Butch" Neuenschwander

Hall of Fame Honoree Vernon "Butch" Neuenschwander attended Del City High School from 1983-1986. He attended the United States Naval Academy, where he received his Bachelor of Science and was selected as Platoon Commander for Naval Academy Plebe Summer Boot Camp. Commander Neuenschwander received his Masters Degree in Public Administration from Troy State University (now Troy University) in 1997. 

Commander Neuenschwander has served the United States Navy for 17 years and is a Desert Storm Veteran and an Operation Iraqi Freedom Veteran. He has received the Meritorious Service Medal; 4 Navy Commendation Medals; 2 Navy Achievement Medals; Kuwait Liberation Medal; 2 Global War on Terrorism Medals; 1991 Joint Meritorious Unit Commendation for assisting in the evacuation of 20,000 DOD dependents from Subic Bay Philippines after the volcano eruption; 1993 Humanitarian Award for disaster relief of Hawaiian Island of Kauai after hurricane Iniki; Armed Forces Medal for assisting in aftermath of Hurricane Katrina; and the Coast Guard Meritorious Unit Commendation for assistance in rescuing 8 Iraqi merchants after their ship sank. He has also served as Head Coach for the Naval Academy Women's Rugby Team (finishing 3rd in the nation); 1999 volunteer speaker to University of Oklahoma NROTC; 2006-2007 Corpus Christi Rugby Men's and Women's Head Coach; 2006-present volunteer for Patriot Guard Riders; and is a regular speaker at Del City High School.

Dennis L. O'Neal

Hall of Fame Honoree Dennis L. O'Neal attended Del City High School from 1966-1969. He received a Bachelor of Science in Nuclear Engineering from Texas A&M University in 1973, where he was a member of Phi Eta Sigma; a Masters Degree of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Oklahoma State University in 1977, where he received a Research Assistantship; and his Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from Purdue University in 1982, where he was awarded the Chevron Fellowship.

Dr. O'Neal is currently the Dean of Engineering and Computer Science at Baylor University.   Prior to joining Baylor in 2012, he was Associate Dean for Research in the College of Engineering at Texas A&M University.  From 2003-2011, he was the department head of the Mechanical Engineering Department at Texas A&M, which is one of the largest Mechanical Engineering programs in the country. He previously was a Professor in that department.  From 1977-80, he was a research staff member at Oak Ridge National Laboratory.  Dr. O'Neal served on the Energy Resources Board (2000-2003); served as Associate Editor, Journal of Energy Resources Technology for the American Society of Mechanical Engineers.  He has served on numerous committees in the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air Conditioning Engineers.  He is a fellow in both the American Society of Mechanical Engineers and the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air Conditioning Engineers.  Dr. O'Neal is also a widely published author with over 90 journal publications and has given seminars in China, Japan, Qatar, and Korea.

The 2007 inductees include: John O'Haver, Class of 1974; Dennis L. O'Neal, Class of 1969; and Vernon "Butch" Neuenschwander, Class of 1986.

John O'Haver

Hall of Fame Honoree John O'Haver attended Del City High School from 1972-1974. He received a Bachelor of Science Degree from the University of Oklahoma in Secondary Education, Mathematics. He received his Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from the University of Oklahoma in 1995, where he received various honors and awards, including Honorable Mention, 1994 DuPont Plunkett Student Awards for Innovation; Graduate Student Award for outstanding research and presentation; McAlester Scottish Rite Foundation Graduate Fellowship 1992-1993; and Phillips Petroleum Graduate Fellowship, 1992-1993.

Dr. O'Haver was a mathematics and science teacher at Del City High School for 12 years and is now a chemical engineering faculty member at the University of Mississippi. Dr. O'Haver has more than 30 technical publications; more than 70 professional presentations; has served as research advisor for numerous masters and doctoral students; and has secured more than $3,000,000 in National Science Foundation funds for K-12 outreach. He has also served as a Sunday school teacher and elder at his church.