Distinguished Alumni
The following University of Utah alumni have been recognized by the Department of Atmospheric Sciences for their outstanding contributions and service to the Atmospheric Sciences profession. This list of distinguished alumni includes research scientists, professional meteorologists, veterans, and entrepreneurs. Please contact the Department of Atmospheric Sciences at atmos-office@lists.utah.edu if you would like to nominate yourself or someone else for the annual Distinguished Alumni Award. We invite our Distinguished Alumni Award winner to be the keynote speaker at our annual awards banquet, which is held the day before spring commencement.
Ching-Yen Tsay (2020)
Degree: Ph.D. (1972) Meteorology
Current Position: Chairperson of Taiwan's Industrial Technology Research Institute (Retired)
Richard Brown (2019)
Degree: B.S. (1977) Meteorology
Current Position: Chief Executive Officer of Shipping, StormGeo Applied Weather Technology Inc.
Jennifer Comstock (2018)
Degree: Ph.D. (2000) Meteorology
Current Position: Engineering and Science Products Manager, Department of Energy Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) Program, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Ping Yang (2017)
Degree: Ph.D. (1995) Meteorology
Current Position: Professor and Head of the Department of Atmospheric Sciences, Texas A & M University
Ethan Greene (2016)
Degree: B.S. (1997) Meteorology
Current Position: Director of the Colorado Avalanche Information Center (CAIC)
Steven A. Root (2015)
Degrees: B.S. (1976), M.S. (1980) Meteorology
Current Position: Chief Analytics Officer and Senior VP of Sales at AccuWeather, Inc.
John E. Jack Hales (2014)
Degrees: B.S. (1965), M.S. (1967) Meteorology
Current Position: Lead Forecaster, Storm Prediction Center, National Weather Service, Norman, OK (Retired)
Kristi Gebhart (2013)
Degrees: B.S. (1979), M.S. (1981) Meteorology
Current Position: Research Physical Scientist, Cooperative Institute for Research in the Atmosphere, Colorado State University
S. Edward Boselly (2012)
Degree: M.S. (1968) Meteorology
Current Position: Owner, Weather Solutions Group (Retired)
Jeffrey Anderson (2011)
Degree: B.S. (1984) Meteorology
Current Position: Senior Scientist Section Head, Data Assimilation Research Section, National Center for Atmospheric Research
Qiang Fu (2010)
Degree: Ph.D. (1991) Meteorology
Current Position: Professor, Department of Atmospheric Sciences, University of Washington
Dell Vaughn McDonald (2009)
Degree: B.S. (1960), M.S. (1966) Meteorology
Current Position: Lieutenant Colonel U.S. Air Force (Retired), President and CEO of Home Health Services, Inc. (Retired), Volunteer with the Road Home and the Housing Authority of Salt Lake County
Awards: 2016 Jack Gallivan Legacy Award Utah Housing Coalition
Patrick Minnis (2008)
Degree: Ph.D. (1991) Meteorology
Current Position: Senior Research Scientist, Science Directorate, NASA Langley Research Center
Kim (Waldron) Walsh (2007)
Degrees: M.S. (1991), Ph.D. (1994) Meteorology
Current Position: Colonel U.S. Air Force (Retired), Faculty National Defense University (Retired)
George Wilkerson (2006)
Degree: B.S. (1985) Meteorology
Current Position: Director Monitoring Services, Meteorological Solutions, Inc.
Vincent Salomonson (2005)
Degree: B.S. (1960) Meteorology
Current Position: Research Professor, Departments of Atmospheric Sciences and Geography, University of Utah
Larry Dunn (2004)
Degrees: B.S. (1979), Ph.D. (1993) Meteorology
Current Position: Meteorologist in Charge, National Weather Service, Salt Lake City Forecast Office (Retired)
Dan Pope (2003)
Degree: B.S. (1984) Meteorology
Current Position: Chief Meteorologist, ABC-4 TV, Salt Lake City, UT
William Alder (2002)
Degrees: B.S. (1964), M.S. (1966) Meteorology
Current Position: Chief Information Officer at Sun Peak Capital, Salt Lake City, UT; Meteorologist in Charge, National Weather Service, Salt Lake City Forecast Office (Retired)
Fred Lewis (2002)
Degrees: B.S. (1973), Ph.D. (1979) Meteorology
Current Position: Director of Policy and Resources, Office of
Information Dominance and Chief Information Officer, Office of the Secretary of the
Air Force, Washington, D.C.
Mark Eubank (2001)
Degree: B.S. (1971) Meteorology
Current Position: Chief Meteorologist, KSL-TV Channel 5, Salt Lake City, UT (Retired)
A. E. (Sandy) MacDonald (2001)
Degrees: M.S. (1973), Ph.D. (1975) Meteorology
Current Position: Chief Science Advisor for NOAA's Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research, Director of the Earth System Research Laboratory, President of American Meteorological Society (2015)