The SigEp Citation is bestowed every two years at Grand Chapter Conclave to alumni who have achieved exceptional success and stature in their careers. It demonstrates the power of the SigEp experience and the outstanding alumni of the Fraternity. Fewer than 300 brothers have received the SigEp Citation. They are titans of industry, government & military leaders, artists, actors and many other successful brothers.

Take a moment to get to know these remarkable brothers as we look forward to celebrating their success at the 59th Grand Chapter Conclave in Tampa at the SigEp Educational Foundation Gala and Board of Governors Dinner.

Larry Connor, Ohio ’72

Connor is an entrepreneur, nonprofit activist investor and adventurer. He is best known for founding The Connor Group, a real estate investment firm that has grown from $0 to $5 billion in assets. The company operates luxury apartment communities in 17 markets and has earned national recognition as a top workplace.

His company’s success has helped fund The Connor Group Kids & Community Partners, which has committed $800 million over the next decade to nonprofit causes, including The Greater Dayton School, Ohio’s first private, non-religious school for under-resourced students.

An astronaut certified by NASA, Connor piloted Ax-1, the first private mission to the International Space Station, just months after diving to the ocean’s deepest point. This made him the first person to reach the deepest part of the ocean and space within a year.

View the Journal’s interview with Connor here.

Mike Lincoln, Southeast Missouri State ’84

Lincoln started his professional journey at SigEp as a regional director. Following a year on the road, he worked for the governor of Illinois as a legislative assistant and speech writer, then later answered his true calling and earned his law degree from the University of Virginia School of Law.

Currently, Lincoln is a partner and vice chair of Cooley LLP and works with the firm’s senior leadership team on client relations, strategic planning, lateral growth and communications. Cooley is based in Silicon Valley and is the No. 1 firm in the world for venture capital and tech IPOs. He is also an adjunct professor at the University of Virginia School of Law, where he has taught a course on entrepreneurship and venture capital for the past 26 years.

In 2022, the Washingtonian named Lincoln a top dealmaker on its Tech Titans list for the 10th consecutive time. Each year since 2015, the Washington Business Journal has included him on its Power 100 list, which recognizes the region’s most powerful business leaders.

Lincoln also serves on the boards of the Focused Ultrasound Research Foundation, Mindshare and Warroad and is the past co-chairman of the Medical Care for Children Partnership.

Charles S. McNeil, Colorado School of Mines ’71

McNeil is CEO of NexGen Resources, an energy-focused company he founded in 1991. The company supplies coal for Xcel Energy’s Texas power plants, provides carbon capture and storage commercialization, explores and develops oil and gas resources, and implements hydrogen economy projects in world-scale methane and ammonia plants. NexGen has a diversified portfolio in real estate assets, consumer finance and oral surgery centers.

A licensed professional engineer in Colorado, McNeil is a member of various professional organizations. He also sits on the boards of several charitable organizations in Denver, including the Greater Colorado Boy Scouts (past board chairman and a Distinguished Eagle Scout). He was also inducted into the Colorado Business Hall of Fame.

McNeil received the Mines Distinguished Achievement Medal in 1998. He is involved with his alma mater as a member of the Foundation Board of Governors, President’s Council and the Guggenheim Society, and was appointed to the Board of Trustees.

View the Journal’s interview with McNeil here.

Kevin O’Connor, Loras ’88

O’Connor holds a BA in public relations and has led a decorated career in athlete development and representation. In the early 2000s, he served in several volunteer roles with SigEp, including chapter counselor for the South Florida chapter, district governor, a member of the National Leadership Committee and Conclave task force chairman.

O’Connor built his reputation as executive director of tennis for the Anschutz Entertainment Group before joining Saddlebrook Sports, where he served as president of Saddlebrook Properties LLC. In this role, he negotiated training programs and retainer-based services for professional tennis players.

He’s known for expanding the elite athlete training business to incorporate team sports. O’Connor put together training programs with Creative Artists Agency’s baseball division, immediately bringing more than 20 players to the program, including World Series champions Derek Jeter and Ryan Howard. He produced similar results in professional football and hockey.

He joined Lagardère Unlimited in 2011. Two years later, he transitioned from his role as chief operating officer to a global position as senior advisor to Arnaud Lagardère, the general and managing partner of parent company Lagardère, the media, publishing and defense conglomerate.

Jim Pillen, Nebraska ’79

Pillen was sworn in as Nebraska’s 41st governor on Jan. 5, 2023.

Pillen grew up on a farm in Platte County, Nebraska, and raised pigs with his father, Dale. He earned a bachelor’s in animal science from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and his doctorate of veterinary medicine from Kansas State. In addition to his studies as an undergraduate, he was a defensive back for the Nebraska Cornhuskers football team and was inducted into the Nebraska Football Hall of Fame in 2004.

In 1983, Pillen opened a small animal and swine consulting practice. He also partnered with his father to raise sows and market hogs on their home farm. Through expansions and new ventures, Pillen has built a multigenerational, family-run business that is today composed of over 1,100 team members. The family business operates by some basic core beliefs: Do what is right, do the best you can and treat others the way you want to be treated.

Pillen and his wife, Suzanne, have four children, Sarah, Brock, Polly and Izic.

Kelcy Warren, Texas-Arlington ’78

In 1996, Warren co-founded Dallas-based Energy Transfer, a small intrastate natural gas pipeline operator with about 200 miles of pipe and 20 employees. Today, Warren is executive chairman of one of the country’s largest and most diversified portfolios of publicly traded energy partnerships, which includes both Energy Transfer LP and Sunoco LP.

He’s been recognized by numerous organizations for his contributions to the industry, including the Horatio Alger Association of Distinguished Americans, the Dallas Business Hall of Fame, the Texas Business Hall of Fame and the Ammys Hall of Fame.

A dedicated philanthropist, Warren is a long-time supporter of educational and medical institutions, as well as children’s organizations.

Warren serves on the board of the Woodall Rodgers Park Foundation and was appointed by Governor Greg Abbott to serve on the University of Texas System Board of Regents through 2025. He was also appointed to the Kennedy Center Board of Trustees.

You’ll find these brothers’ names alongside many of SigEp’s most prominent alumni — a powerful reminder of the impact our brotherhood has across generations.

More than 1,000 SigEps will gather in Tampa this July 23–27 for the 59th Grand Chapter Conclave — a celebration of our brotherhood, legacy, and the prestigious Citation presentation at the Educational Foundation Gala and Board of Governors Dinner. Don’t miss it — register for Conclave here!