2024 CDR John Herrington will be awarded on Saturday, March 2 at the Central Library.
2022 Archie Mason
2020 Walter Echo-Hawk
2018 Dr. Henrietta Mann
2016 Sam Proctor
2014 Ruthe Blalock Jones
2012 Kirke Kickingbird
2010 Billy Mills
2008 Neal McCaleb
2006 Wilma Mankiller
2004 Charles Chibitty
2008 Circle of Honor
Honoring Neal McCaleb
McCaleb is an enrolled member of the Chickasaw Nation. From 2001-2003, McCaleb led the Bureau of Indian Affairs in Washington, D.C., as the assistant secretary of the U.S. Department of the Interior. He twice has led the Oklahoma transportation system. While transportation secretary and director of the Oklahoma Department of Transportation and Oklahoma Turnpike Authority, he led the completion of the John Kilpatrick Turnpike in Oklahoma City and Creek Turnpike in Tulsa. He also served eight years in the Oklahoma House of Representatives, where he served four years as the Republican floor leader. Since leaving the Bureau of Indian Affairs, McCaleb has worked to assist the Chickasaw Nation with the development of long-term economic strategies, serving on the board of directors for Bank 2, which is wholly owned by the Chickasaw Nation. He also serves as chairman of the board of directors of Chickasaw Nation Industries Inc. McCaleb has received numerous honors and awards, including: Hall of Fame for outstanding professional achievement by the Oklahoma College of Engineering, Architecture and Technology, Oklahoma State University, 1989; Chickasaw Nation Hall of Fame, 1999; and National Congress of American Indian Leadership Award, 2003.
