Co-founder, Senior Partner & VP of Engineering, Pecos Country Energy and Exploration Co.
Aeronautical Engineer Senior Staff, Mass Properties Group, F-22, Lockheed Martin (Retired)
A.A.S. ASE 1971, Saint Phillips College, San Antonio, TX
B.S. ASE 1975, The University of Texas at Austin
Steve DeLeon was a senior staff engineer manager with General Dynamics/Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co. for 38 years until his retirement in 2012. He started Pecos Country Energy in 2013 as an oil investment firm and it has grown to a full-fledged exploration and drilling company with the acquisition of Shappell Oil & Exploration company.
While attending UT and under the mentorship of Dr. Phil Schmidt, DeLeon with a handful of students founded Pi Sigma Pi, “People Serving People” that increased the academic success of underrepresented students at the university.
In 1975, DeLeon graduated from UT with a B.S. in aerospace engineering and was recruited by General Dynamics in Fort Worth, Texas due to his service work at UT. At General Dynamics he continued to be an advocate for UT, recruiting and mentoring minorities and women into the F-16 fighter program. DeLeon advanced to lead engineer serving on the Vice President’s Engineering Council for both initial and production design approval changes. As a Tier 3 weight and cost control leader on the F-16 and F-22 programs, he drove a significant cost and weight reduction with a multi-discipline engineering group.
DeLeon was named assistant to the president reporting to Charles Anderson directly on special assignments. Due to his skills in organization and innovation, he was loaned out on a three-year assignment to help Fort Worth ISD Superintendent Carl Candoli to use industry resources to enhance technical education in the District. This led to the first Adopt-A-School program in Texas. He worked with the Presidio Rocketry Program to inspire low income/language barrier students to seek out STEM careers. He was the executive producer of a documentary about the program.
DeLeon co-founded the Texas Alliance of Minorities in Engineering (TAME) that focused on joining the efforts of the community, educators and technical professionals to encourage the participation of women and minorities in STEM careers. Both Pi Sigma Pi and TAME are still active and thriving organizations. He established endowments at UT, including the Women in Aerospace Engineering and the Equal Opportunity in Engineering scholarships. He helped form the first alternative high school in Texas and machine shop training with a million-dollar education grant from the Speaker of the House Jim Wright. He has received community service commendations from presidents, George H. Bush, Bill Clinton and George W. Bush and a lifetime achievement award in community service from President Barack Obama. DeLeon also received lifetime achievement awards from the Ford Dealerships foundation and the United Hispanic Council of Tarrant county.
DeLeon lives in Fort Worth with his wife Mary DeLeon. He has four daughters and twenty-one grandchildren and great grandchildren. The DeLeon family has established a legacy of graduates within the UT system. He is a proud Vietnam veteran who served in the 42nd Aerospace and Recovery Group with the USAF. Community service has been Steve DeLeon’s passion for over four decades and continues.
