The University of Tulsa's Petroleum Engineering Department

This month’s Aumnus of the Month is John Redmond. John received his BS in Petroleum Engineering in 1988, followed by MBA in 1995. He joined Conoco as a Petroleum Engineer in 1988 and, after working for three years, joined Samson Resources as an engineering manager from 1991 through 1996. He progressively moved to smaller companies taking on increasingly responsible positions, joining Prospective Investment and Trading Company as Senior Vice President of Engineering and Exploration. Eventually, he became his own boss at Axio Natural Resources, serving as President from 2003 through 2006. After the company was sold to Chesapeake in 2003, he started all over again with Blue Stone Natural Resources as President. He is currently developing a portfolio for the company by acquiring new properties. We wish him the very best in his new adventure.

John in his own words:

Why did you choose TU?

I chose TU because for two main reasons. First, it was close to my home town and the program was among the best in the country. Second, the size of the student body was small relative to most colleges, and that was a better fit for me since I came from a small town.

How did TU prepare you to be an effective engineer in your career?

I can point to many times in my career that the things I learned whiled getting my undergraduate degree that set me apart from my peers at work. I think that some of the coursework related to well performance and production optimization is far more sophisticated for undergraduates at TU relative to other programs.

Any fond memories you would like to share?

My fondest memories of my time at TU were watching Kurt Shoenhard and Frank McCorkle set the curve in every PE class. They were like the Tiger Woods of the Petroleum Engineering school.