Every year since 1999, the Central High School Foundation (CHSF) has inducted 10 people, nine notable alumni and one distinguished educator, to the Central High School Hall of Fame. These inductees are nominated by anyone in the community and applications are reviewed by the Central High School Alumni Association.
On Oct. 9, 2025, the 26th Hall of Fame class was inducted.
Hazel Hempel Abel, class of 1905, was the first woman elected to the U.S. Senate from Nebraska. Before her two months in the Senate, she worked as a teacher and high school principal. She then ran Lincoln’s Abel Construction for 14 years after her husband’s death. Abel’s run in the Senate began in a special election to fill the seat of a deceased Senator., She made history in the Senate as one of the only Republicans to vote to censure Sen. Joe McCarthy for his red-scare era tactics and earned the nickname “Hurricane Hazel.”. She died in 1966.
Class of 1955’s Patricia Wright Brown has a long history of community activism in North Omaha. She has held many high positions in her activism work including board president of the Omaha branch of the NAACP and secretary with the Charles Drew Health Center board. She spent her 40-year career with the Northwestern Bell/Century Link telephone company. She is a longtime member of the Central alumni board and serves as the elder stateswoman of the Alumni Association.
The longest serving member of Omaha’s City Council, Pete Festersen, graduated from Central in 1985. Festersen has worked for the Greater Omaha Chamber and the Peter Kiewit Foundation. Alongside his post on city council, he works as vice president of public affairs for CHI boards and commissions. He has served as president of the city council many times. Festersen has several awards and distinctions, including elected official of the year from the American Society of Public Administration.
Donald Goldstein, class of 1964, has long been active in Omaha’s philanthropic scene. As a businessman he worked in his family’s truck rental and leasing business. With his wealth, Goldstein has helped establish the Goldstein Center for Human Rights at the University of Nebraska- Omaha; helped launch the Samuel Bak Museum and Learning Center, and the Goldstein Aquatic Center at the Jewish Community Center; and contributed to Central.
Twin sisters Jeannene Rice Mason and Jeannette Rice Johnson, class of 1964, have helped preserve Central’s past through their work on the Central Alumni Association’s Historical Committee. They organize and run the archive room in the new addition. Most recently, the twins have helped renovate the display cases in the courtyard, which show some of the school’s most important artifacts. They also engage with students through English and Social Studies classes by helping create lessons.
Class of 1993’s Quatesha Kern has dedicated her life to educating, with over 25 years of teaching experience in the Dallas Independent School District. Kern has been recognized as an incredible teacher, named “Texas Teacher of the Year.” She has served as a role model for her marginalized students. She credits her faith for her accomplishments and hopes to become a state senator.
Stuart Oberman, class of 1988, has many degrees: a B.S. from Iowa and M.S. and Ph.D. from Stanford, all in electrical engineering. His work as a design engineer has played an important role in the development of GPUs for 3D graphics, artificial intelligence, and gaming. He is the current vice president of GPU hardware engineering at NVIDIA. His work has helped AI become mainstream, including ChatGPT. He has served on a number of international conference committees and holds over 55 U.S. patents.
Joel Rogers, a senior leader and civilian in the U.S. military, graduated from Central in 1975. After joining the Marine Corps in his late 20s, Rodgers was deployed to Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2003 and later assigned to work as a congressional liaison for the Pentagon. He was transferred to Offutt Air Force Base in Omaha and still serves as an international affairs specialist and analyst. He has been awarded numerous awards, like the Outstanding Civilian Service Medal. He volunteers to help provide scholarships for OPS JROTC cadets.
High school sweethearts Gary and Cheryl Marks Willis, both class of 1970, have worked tirelessly with CHSF. Joining more than 25 years ago, Gary has chaired the Hall of Fame three times and has served as the official photographer. Cheryl served a term as president of the alumni association board. The couple is commonly seen selling Central gear at class reunions and have served on many other boards around the city, including Gary as president of the American Cancer Society and Cheryl as a founding board member of the Nebraska Psychiatric Nursing Association.
Distinguished Educator and Coach Paul Semrad spent his entire 32-year career at Central. He served as a teacher, data administrator, and championship-winning basketball coach. As head girls’ basketball coach, Semrad led the 1983 and 1984 teams to two undefeated seasons and back-to-back state championships and was inducted into the Nebraska Sports Hall of Fame. Semrad also sponsored student council and coached softball and baseball. He would go on to assume the role of data administrator, using techniques to develop the master academic schedule that is still referenced today. He died in 2020.
