LTC (Ret) William A. Hamilton
Dr. William Hamilton: attended O.U. from 1953 to 1957 and received his commission in the Infantry in 1958. After 20 years and two tours in Viet Nam and Cambodia, he retired having earned: the Silver Star, Legion of Merit, Distinguished Flying Cross, Bronze Stars (4), Purple Heart, Air Medals (20), Army Commendation Medal with “V,” U.S. Air Force Commendation Medal, Expert Infantry Badge, Combat Infantry Badge, the Master Parachutist Badge, and numerous foreign decorations. Before entering O.U., he was Governor of Oklahoma Boy’s State, was twice named a B.M.O.C. at O.U. and finished his time at O.U. as president of the Inter-fraternity Council. On the 75th anniversary of his social fraternity at O.U, he and another brother were named the outstanding members of the previous 75 years. Following military retirement, he and his wife founded an advertising/ political consulting firm. He edited a newspaper in Lincoln, Nebraska, and worked as a writer for the editorial pages of USA Today. Writing under the pseudonym, William Penn, he and his wife are the co-authors of four novels about terrorism directed against the United States. An award-winning nationally syndicated newspaper columnist, he is a laureate of the Oklahoma Journalism Hall of Fame. He holds graduate degrees from The George Washington University, the U.S. Naval War College, the University of Nebraska, and the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, and has taught at the graduate level for the University of Maryland, Columbia College, and Nebraska Wesleyan University. He and his wife, Penny, are co-holders of a World Aviation Speed Record. Both are laureates of the Colorado Aviation Hall of Fame and both are winners of the University of Nebraska Alumni Achievement Award.