WASHINGTON, PA (October 29, 2012)—Washington & Jefferson College (W&J) will honor Robert Kozel ’89, pioneer and entrepreneur in the oil and gas industry, and J. Kevin McMahon, president and chief executive officer of The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust, as Entrepreneurs of the Year at its 26th annual Entrepreneurial Leadership Dinner (ELD) Nov. 7 at The Duquesne Club in Pittsburgh.
Kozel is chief executive officer and chairman of Mountaineer Keystone, LLC, a Marcellus and Utica shale exploration and production company headquartered in Pittsburgh. He has co-founded four other energy-based companies located in the U.S. and Europe: Texas Keystone Inc., an independent oil and gas operator with wells in Pennsylvania, West Virginia and New York; Falcon Partners, a land-leasing pipeline and facilities company; Falcon Drilling, LLC, an oil and gas drilling and services company; and Gulf Keystone Ltd., a company with oil and gas operations in Iraq.
Previously, Kozel was an account manager for Blue Cross/Blue Shield of Western Pennsylvania. His first jobs were at Key Well Services and Keystone Energy.
Kozel is a member of the Pittsburgh Chapter of the Young Presidents’ Organization. He also supports numerous charitable causes, including the Wounded Warrior Project, which provides programs and services to severely injured service members, and was recently was named one of “Pittsburgh’s 50 Finest” by the Western Pennsylvania Chapter of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. He is a past member of the Board of Directors for the Independent Oil and Gas Association of Pennsylvania, and a member of the Independent Oil and Gas Association in West Virginia, New York and Ohio. Kozel holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration from W&J.
McMahon is the president and chief executive officer of The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust, a private non-profit organization founded in 1984 to assist the economic and cultural growth of downtown Pittsburgh and the surrounding region.
McMahon is responsible for the executive management and operations of the Trust’s administrative offices and facilities, including The Benedum Center, Byham Theatre, Harris Theater, O’Reilly Theater, Theater Square, Wood Street Galleries, SPACE and 707-709 Penn Galleries. He oversees all planning, program and project development, including bookings of performing arts, visual arts, entertainment attractions and physical enhancement of the Cultural District as well as budgeting, finance, fundraising, marketing and external relationships with government, civic and corporate entities, and collaboration with District organizations. He also manages a variety of the District’s activities in commercial and non-commercial real-estate development.
Previously, McMahon was executive vice president and chief administrative officer of the Kennedy Center, where he was a member of the Center’s programming group. Under his leadership, the Center’s annual fundraising increased from $14.5 million to $38 million.
McMahon serves on boards for Hiram College, Point Park University, Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh, Greater Pittsburgh Arts Council, and the Pennsylvania Economy League, among others. He also is an adjunct professor for the Heinz School of Management at Carnegie Mellon University. McMahon holds a bachelor’s degree in economics and psychology from Hiram College and a master’s degree in business administration from the City University of New York.
W&J established its Entrepreneurial Studies Program in 1986 with the generous support of Dr. Joseph A. Hardy III. The program has received national recognition for innovation and excellence. Exemplary students in the Entrepreneurial Studies Program are designated as Hardy Scholars. During the past 25 years, the College has honored a variety of regional business builders for their success as entrepreneurs, including Hardy; E. Ronald Salvitti, M.D. ’59, founder and medical director of the Southwestern Pennsylvania Eye Center; William C. Byham, Ph.D., co-founder, chairman, and CEO of Development Dimensions International (DDI), Inc.; and Daniel M. Rooney, Chairman Emeritus of the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Tickets are $100 per person for the dinner, which is open to the public. For reservations, contact 724-223-6075.
(end)
