Two UT PGE Alumni Receive Cockrell School Distinguished Engineering Awards
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May 14, 2013
Every year at spring commencement, the Cockrell School of Engineering honors its alumni with the Distinguished Engineering Alumni Awards.
The Distinguished Engineering Graduate and the Outstanding Young Engineering Graduate awards are the highest honors that the Cockrell School bestows on its alumni.
Established in 1957, the Distinguished Engineering Graduate Award (DEG) recognizes honorees as highly respected professionals, dedicated engineers and supporters of higher education. Including this year’s honorees, 255 alumni have been selected for this award. Established in 1991, the Outstanding Young Engineering Graduate (OYEG) Award recognizes rising stars of Cockrell School alumni under the age of 40. Honorees are selected for their early outstanding professional achievements, dedication to public service and support of higher education. Including this year’s honoree, 26 alumni have received this award.
Of the five honorees this year, two are highly successful UT PGE alumni, who have made a strong impact on the oil & gas industry with their leadership and Texas spirit. The recipients are: Forrest “Eddie” Harrell (DEG), and Carrie Colbert (OYEG). Read about the 2013 Distinguished Engineering Alumni below.
Forrest E. “Eddie” Harrell
B.S. PE 1958
Non-Executive Chairman, Citation Oil & Gas Corp.
After graduating from The University of Texas at Austin in 1958 with a bachelor's degree in petroleum engineering, Eddie Harrell joined Humble Oil & Refining Co. (Exxon) as a reservoir engineer. He left Exxon in 1964 to accept a position with Tenneco Oil Company. While at Tenneco he held a number of engineering and management positions, ending as manager of the Economics and Planning Department. He then joined TransOcean Oil, Inc. as financial vice president and, after a three-year tour with TransOcean's parent, Vickers Energy, was named president and CEO. TransOcean was sold to Mobil in late 1980 and, rather than continue with an established company, he elected to form Citation Oil & Gas Corp. in 1981.
Under the leadership of Harrell and his sons, Curtis and Forrest, Citation has grown to become one of the largest privately held independent oil and gas companies in the United States. Since 1985, Citation's success has resulted from a focused business strategy of acquiring and operating domestic oil and gas properties. Today, Citation has ownership interest in more than 14,000 wells in approximately 400 separately designated fields. The company is headquartered in Houston and has more than 500 employees in 13 states.
Harrell is a registered Professional Engineer in Texas, a member of the Society of Petroleum Engineers and a Friend of Alec. He has served in board positions and leadership roles in many corporate, professional, civic and charitable organizations. While at UT Austin, Harrell had a lively student life. He was a member of Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity and the Texas Cowboys, and he was an active participant in intramural sports.
Harrell and his wife Sandra have been married 53 years. They reside in Houston and have three sons and 12 grandchildren. All three sons have degrees from The University of Texas at Austin and one granddaughter is completing her junior year at UT Austin's Jackson School of Geosciences.
Carrie D. Colbert
B.S. PE 1999, MBA 2009
Senior Reservoir Engineer, Hilcorp Energy Company
A native of the small Texas Panhandle town of Perryton, Carrie Colbert is the first college graduate in her family. Colbert graduated from The University of Texas at Austin in 1999 with a Bachelor of Science in petroleum engineering with highest honors. In 2009, she earned her Master of Business Administration from UT Austin while continuing to work full time.
Colbert’s business passion begins at the intersection of technical analysis and business strategy. Colbert began her career at Anadarko Petroleum Corporation, where she held several production and reservoir engineering positions. Subsequently, Colbert accepted a position as the senior corporate reserves manager at Hilcorp Energy Company, which ranks seventh on Fortune magazine's 2013 "100 Best Places to Work For" list. In this capacity, Colbert oversaw oil and gas reserve estimations, reserve report preparations and reserve-based valuation of the company.
After earning her MBA, Colbert worked on the financial side of Hilcorp’s business. As head of investor relations, she facilitated interactions with the company’s bankers, bondholders and rating agency analysts, skillfully telling the Hilcorp story from both a technical and financial perspective. She was also very instrumental in developing the company’s five-year strategic growth plan. Colbert has recently transitioned back to the technical side of the business as a senior reservoir engineer, actively finding additional oil and gas production and reserves, while optimizing cash flow from these fields.
Colbert, who resides in Houston, serves on the UT Austin Petroleum and Geosystems Engineering External Advisory Council, is a member of the Society of Petroleum Engineers and is involved in the Houston chapter of the Society of Petroleum Evaluation Engineers. Her personal passions include fashion, travel, photography and Houston-based philanthropic endeavors.
