Oklahoma State University Unveils Five-Year Campaign to Raise $1 Billion to Fund Scholarships, Faculty Positions, Research, Programs and Facilities

Oklahoma State Alumnus, Energy Entrepreneur and Philanthropist T. Boone Pickens Announces $100 Million Challenge Gift to Fund Student Scholarships

Oklahoma State President V. Burns Hargis Announces $537 Million Raised in 26 Months for “Branding Success: The CampaignThe Campaign reviews for Oklahoma State University”

• To view Feb. 26 event, click here.
• For more on the Branding Success campaign, go to: http://osugiving.com.
• Photos of the event can be found on our FlickrFlickr site: http://www.flickr.com/photos/ostatenews/sets/72157623514435410/

(STILLWATER, OK – February 26, 2010) – Before an orange-clad crowd in the packed atrium of the Student Union on the campus of Oklahoma State University (OSU), the president of OSU, V. Burns Hargis, announced a $1 billion campaign to raise private funds to strengthen student scholarships and aid, endowments for faculty support, as well as fund advanced research and academic initiatives, and upgrade teaching and research facilities, including renovations to the Student Union and the construction of additional essential facilities, such as the Spears School of Business and a new Performing Arts Center.

“This campaign marks the most ambitious fundraising initiative in the history of Oklahoma State University,” noted Hargis, who is also an OSU alumnus. “The incredible generosity of graduates and friends around the world who believe in our land-grant mission and embrace our vision to make OSU a leader in education, public service, and research has inspired and encouraged us to move forward with this historic campaign at this time.”

Hargis continued, “The need has never been greater at Oklahoma State, and now is the time for us to seek significant private funds so we can serve our students, support our faculty and fund vital research at a much higher level than ever before.  This campaign will secure OSU’s place as one of AmericaAmerica reviews’s premier public universities and a leader among land-grant universities.”

The $ 1 billion campaign, called ‘Branding Success: The Campaign for Oklahoma State University,’ is chaired by OSU graduates Ross and Billie McKnight of Throckmorton, Texas.   The McKnights, who founded and now operate several successful business enterprises in banking, energy and ranching, met at OSU in 1969.   “This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for Billie and me to give back in a big way to the university that means so much to both of us.  We are honored to lead this campaign,” Ross McKnight said.  “We credit a lot of our success to the education and experiences we gained as students at OSU, and we know the lasting benefits of this campaign on OSU are incalculable.”

Though the campaign is being publicly launched today, the “quiet phase” of the campaign has been underway since President Hargis’ appointment in Dec. 2007. More than $437 million has been committed in conjunction with this campaign, President Hargis reported.

Pickens Announces Surprise $100 Million Challenge Gift – Pushes Total Raised to $537 Million

As President Hargis unveiled the $437 million amount, OSU alumnus, entrepreneur and philanthropist T. Boone Pickens joined him at the podium for a surprise announcement. The curious crowd watched as Pickens announced a $100 million testamentary challenge gift to fund a major endowment for scholarships to not only attract more students to OSU, but also provide financial assistance to students who are eager to attend a major research university but are unable to do so because of personal financial limitations.

“You know me - I want us to be the best in everything we do at Oklahoma State. We are not going to be second to anyone, either academically or athletically.  I know the leadership now in place at OSU with Ann and Burns has been a game-changer. We are on the move in ways I could have never imagined a few years ago.  These are exciting times at OSU, and the possibilities are limitless.  I was amazed at the sheer number of people who stepped up to support the stadium project and the $100 million match to endowed chairs and professorships.  There is no doubt in my mind we will succeed again,” Pickens said.

“We are extraordinarily grateful to Boone for his continued generosity to Oklahoma State.  Boone’s astounding gift, combined with the many other advance gifts we have already received, puts us in a strong position to meet and even exceed our billion dollar goal before Dec. 31, 2014--the target date for the completion of the campaign,” Hargis said.

In his remarks, President Hargis outlined how the one billion dollars would be used to address pressing, immediate needs as well as emerging opportunities.  He said $500 million will be used to endow scholarships and fellowships for students; $200 million will be used to attract and retain top-flight professors and researchers; $200 million to construct and upgrade educational and research facilities; and $100 million to create and sustain programs and provide services that will benefit the citizens, communities and economic well-being of Oklahoma.

“We have a responsibility to build on the momentum we have established today,” Hargis said.  “This campaign is indeed audacious and historic in its scope and magnitude.  The money we will raise through ‘Branding Success: The Campaign for Oklahoma State University’ will have a tremendous impact on OSU, our faculty, and students as well as our state and beyond, benefitting generations to come.  This is our time to redefine the future of OSU, raise expectations, seize opportunities and do something truly purposeful and exceptional.”

To learn more about ‘Branding Success: The Campaign for Oklahoma State University,’ visit www.OSUgiving.com.

The OSU Foundation serves as the private fundraising organization for OSU, as designated by the OSU Regents.  Its mission is to unite donor and university passions and priorities to achieve excellence.

Oklahoma State University is a five-campus, public land-grant educational system that improves the lives of people in Oklahoma, the nation, and the world through integrated, high-quality teaching, research and outreach. More than 32,000 students attend OSU with nearly 21,000 on the main campus in Stillwater.  Students are from all 50 states and around 110 nations.  Established in 1890, OSU has graduated more than 200,000 students.  Today, OSU graduates are making a lasting difference in Oklahoma, the nation and the world.

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OKLAHOMA CITY (February 24, 2010) – The Board of Directors of the Oklahoma Tobacco Settlement Endowment Trust (TSET) during its quarterly meeting approved a proposal creating a virtual research center to be known as the Oklahoma Center for Adult Stem Cell Research. This $5.5 million investment in adult stem cell research over the next five years will catalyze the work of Oklahoma scientists, leverage resources obtainable from the federal government and other funding entities, and help attract additional talent to the state.

The purpose of the virtual research center is to build Oklahoma excellence in one of the fastest growing areas of medical research and to serve as a trusted resource for public information. Initial members of the center will include Oklahoma State University, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center and the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation.

“Improving the health of Oklahomans requires a multi-faceted approach that includes prevention and research,” said Casey Killblane, TSET board of directors’ chair. “Expanding TSET’s current research funding to include adult stem cell research will help position our state as a leader in this area and offers the potential to provide dramatically improved treatment options for a variety of conditions including heart attack, stroke, lung disease, and cancer which plague our state.”

Adult stem cells are undifferentiated cells found throughout the body that multiply by cell division to replenish dying cells and regenerate damaged tissues. Scientific interest in adult stem cells has centered on their ability to divide or self-renew indefinitely, potentially regenerating entire organs from a few cells. Oklahoma researchers are optimistic about the medical advancements that may come from adult stem cells.

“Adult stem cells are undifferentiated cells that give us the potential to reprogram the body to fight cancer, replace cells destroyed by diabetes and regenerate tissue throughout the body,” said Joseph Ferretti, Ph.D., Provost and Senior Vice President at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center. “Dedicated researchers at the OUHSC already are in the forefront of identifying, isolating and targeting adult stem cells to develop the next generation of cancer therapy and regenerate bladder tissue. Funding generated by the Center will enhance our efforts to find cures and help provide the quality health care and therapies Oklahomans deserve.”

A similar approach to this type of research funding has been taken before by the TSET board with the successful establishment of the Oklahoma Tobacco Research Center (OTRC) at the OU Cancer Institute. Using a competitive, peer-review process, the OTRC supported three research projects during its first year, four during its second year, and is currently reviewing its third round of seed grants. The OTRC has applied for six federal grants seeking additional funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH). One five-year grant was recently funded by the National Cancer Institute at $1.5 million.

"OSU is delighted to participate in the new Center" said Stephen McKeever, Oklahoma State University Vice President for Research and Technology Transfer. "Research on adult stem cells offers many exciting possibilities to combat disease through tissue regeneration and the vision of the TSET Board in establishing the Center is to be applauded."

The structure for Oklahoma Center for Adult Stem Cell Research will include a governing body comprised of representatives from at least three Oklahoma research institutions. Initial members will be:

•  Stephen McKeever, Ph.D., Vice President for Research and Technology Transfer, Oklahoma State University
•  Stephen M. Prescott, M.D., President, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation
•  Joseph J. Ferretti, Ph.D., Senior Vice President and Provost, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center.

The governing body will be charged with establishing broad goals for the Center, appointing the scientific director, approving members of the steering committee, approving the annual budget, and monitoring its progress. The scientific director will be responsible for day-to-day operation of the Center. The steering committee’s role will be to conduct the peer review needed to assure scientific excellence, establish funding priorities and develop new ways to propel research in adult stem cell research.

The Center’s administrative office will be housed at Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation (OMRF) by agreement of the governing board. Paul W. Kincade Ph.D., Program Chair, Immunobiology and Cancer Research at OMRF, will serve as the Center’s first scientific director.

“This is a bold step for Oklahoma, a real chance for us to blaze a new path,” said Stephen M. Prescott, M.D., President, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation. “Researchers have already had great success reprogramming adult stem cells. With this new Center, our state’s scientists will have the resources to explore therapeutic and diagnostic applications for cells that already exist in all of our bodies.”

The Oklahoma Tobacco Settlement Endowment Trust was established through a constitutional amendment approved by Oklahoma voters in November 2000. While most state governments have failed to keep their promise to use tobacco settlement funds for tobacco prevention and other programs to improve health, Oklahomans have created an endowment to assure that funds will be available for these purposes for generations to come. More information can be found on the Web by visiting: www.tset.ok.gov.
The Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation is an independent, nonprofit biomedical research institute dedicated to understanding and developing more effective treatments for human diseases. Chartered in 1946, its scientists focus on such critical research areas as Alzheimer’s disease, cancer, lupus and cardiovascular disease. For additional Information, visit www.omrf.org.

As Oklahoma’s only comprehensive academic cancer center, the OU Cancer Institute is raising the standard of cancer treatment in the state through research and education. The center is working toward an application to the National Cancer Institute to be designated as a “Comprehensive Cancer Center,” the gold standard of cancer research and care. Later this year, the OU Cancer Institute will move into a new 210,000-square-foot building. The facility will bring all outpatient cancer programs under one roof at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center. For additional Information, visit www.OUCancer.org.

(STILLWATER, Okla., Feb. 25, 2010) -- Oklahoma State University won a number of honors at the world’s largest Greek leadership conference.  A total of 28 Greek students and advisers representing OSU’s Panhellenic, Interfraternity, National Pan-Hellenic and Multicultural Greek councils attended the Association of Fraternal Leadership and Values and the National Black Greek Leadership Conference this month in St. Louis.

OSU received the Gamma Sigma Alpha Award for having the highest differential between Greek and non-Greek grade point averages in the Midwest Region, according to Ival Gregory, manager of OSU’s Fraternity and Sorority Affairs.
The OSU Panhellenic Council received the Sutherland Award for the best council in its division, according to Liz Osborne, coordinator of OSU Fraternity and Sorority Affairs. This was the first time OSU has received this award.

The Panhellenic Council also received recognition in all eight possible categories in Division III: academic achievement, membership recruitment, public relations, council management, leadership and educational development, philanthropy and community service, risk reduction and management, and self-governance and judicial affairs.

IFC was recognized in five categories in the IFC Division III: leadership and educational development, membership recruitment, public relations, risk reduction and management, and self-governance and judicial affairs, and was a finalist for the Jellison Award, the award for the top achieving council in the division.

NPHC was recognized in the council management and public relations category.

As a first-time awards applicant, the Multicultural Greek Council was recognized in both categories in which it applied in the Multicultural/Unified Greek Council Division: academic achievement and philanthropy and community service.

TULSA, Okla. – A group of Oklahoma State University College of Osteopathic Medicine physicians are providing car seats for their patients after finding that those without the means to purchase an infant car seat often simply borrow one to get the infant home, then do without.

“Fatalities among children can be reduced by 71 percent through the use of infant care restraints yet 20-25 percent of children still ride unrestrained and 80 percent of infants under the age of one are improperly restrained,” says Joseph R. Johnson, D.O., chair of the OSU Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology.  

Believing that a good way to ensure a positive impact in communities is to provide what they are lacking, the physicians started the program. Each patient that delivers through the obstetrical department at OSU Medical Center receives a free infant car seat and no infant under their care goes home without an acceptable infant car seat. New parents also receive education about the proper positioning to make sure their new addition arrives safely at their destination.

William Po, M.D., associate residency director, said about the cost, “It’s important for us to teach the next generation of doctors that regardless of cost, giving to our community is more than just writing a prescription, but putting our beliefs into actions.”

Johnson said, “Millions of dollars are spent each year in parent education but when you can’t afford a car seat, education does little to curb the situation.  Our OSU doctors are making a difference. As physicians we find regulations to healthcare access, and the strains on our economy are no excuse to forget what we love about medicine and that’s caring for people.  At OSU we know that our gift comes from a servant’s heart and a love for the communities we serve.”

Lance Frye, M.D., notes that infants from birth to one year of age should ride in a rear-facing seat with harness straps below the shoulder level. After age one, or greater than 20 pounds, a toddler should be positioned forward facing with harness straps again located at or above the shoulder level.  “Proper positioning is essential to maximal protection,” he added.  

Information about infant safety and the proper use of infant car seats is available at the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration at www.nhtsa.dot.gov <{markup-0}>  or from the caring physicians at OSU Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, (918) 586-4500.  OSU Physicians Obstetrics and Gynecology is at 717 S. Houston Ave., Suite 200.

Brad Duvall, Sapulpa aerospace and mechanical engineering senior at Oklahoma State University, is one of 75 students in the nation to receive a $500 Patrick W. Halloran Scholarship from the Order of Omega, a national honor society for outstanding Greek leaders.

The scholarship recognizes students for their academic ability, participation and leadership in campus organizations, citizenship and service to Order of Omega and the Greek Community.

Duvall, a member of Alpha Tau Omega fraternity, is the son of Jack and Genie Duvall of Sapulpa and is a 2005 graduate of Bristow Senior High School.

Dianne Rocheleau, a geography professor at Clark University in Worcester, Mass., has worked for more than 35 years in rural forest and farming communities in the United States, Kenya, Dominican Republic and MexicoMexico reviews.

On Monday, MarchMarch reviews 1, she visits the Oklahoma State University campus to talk about “Gender, Culture, Nature and Networks: Moral and Political Ecologies of Indigenous, Feminist, Campesino and Conservation Politics.” The lecture starts at 3:30 p.m. in Room 035 in Murray Hall and is free and open to the public.

Rocheleau says she strives to understand land use, landscape and ecological change through a lens of social justice, political power and cultural autonomy.

At Clark University, Rocheleau also directs the global environmental studies major and has served as director of women’s and gender studies. She is affiliated with programs in environmental science, and international development and social change, as well as community development and planning.

She has conducted research with farmers in Kenya as a senior scientist for the International Council for Research in Agroforestry. She also has served as a program officer in rural poverty and resources for the Ford Foundation, which supports innovative research and practice.

The lecture is funded by the Social Science Seminar Series in the OSU College of Arts & Sciences and is hosted by the OSU Department of Geography and the OSU Gender and WomenWomen reviews’s Studies program. To learn more, phone (405) 744-9178 or e-mail rebecca.sheehan@okstate.edu

(STILLWATER, Okla., Feb. 23, 2010) -- Oklahoma State University and Southwest Jiaotong University in China have signed an agreement in which students from the Chinese campus can complete their B.S. degrees at OSU.

Southwest Jiaotong was the first university in China to send Chinese reciprocal exchange students to Stillwater and to receive an American student from OSU for study on their campus.

Dr. Marlene Strathe, OSU executive vice president and provost, and Chunyang Chen, president of Southwest Jiaotong University, signed the “twinning” agreement during a ceremony on the OSU campus on Feb. 19. This agreement will allow SWJTU to send more of their undergraduates to study in Stillwater.

Also attending the ceremony were five representatives from the Chinese campus, Hongyun He, director of the Research Center of Intelligent Control and Simulation; Shibin Gao, dean of the School of Electrical Engineering;Yanjun Qiu, director of International Cooperation and Exchange Office; Yanlin Zhao, director of the president’s office; and Kaiyin Yan, director of the Undergraduate Office.

Dr. Lee Bird, OSU vice president for Student Affairs, and Dr. Mark Weiser, associate dean and professor in the Spears School of Business, have traveled to SJU twice to meet and work with its administrators to make the student exchange program possible. Weiser’s May 2009 study abroad program was hosted by SWJTU during their visit to Chengdu, and Bird later hosted 10 SWJTU administrators on the Stillwater campus during her Student Affairs International Symposium in July 2009.

The visiting delegation also met with OSU President Burns Hargis and with administrators of the OSU College of Engineering, Architecturearchitecture and Technology’s Civil Engineering Department and administrators of the Spears School of Business, and toured both areas.

Vivian Wang, an assistant in the OSU Office of International Students and Scholars coordinated the visit.

(STILLWATER, Okla., February 19, 2010) -- Oklahoma State University has named Howard Barnett, current OSU-Tulsa president, as president of all the university’s operations in Tulsa. He will serve as president of both the OSU Center for Health Sciences campus and OSU-Tulsa. The move is subject to approval by the OSU/A&M Board of Regents.

“This is a positive step for OSU and the Tulsa community,” said Burns Hargis, OSU President. “A single leadership voice will strengthen OSU’s academic and medical mission in Tulsa. It will help us streamline functions and efficiency, which means we will more effectively serve our students and the community.”

Hargis praised the job Stanley Grogg, D.O., has done as interim head of the OSU Center for Health Sciences. He will remain in that role while OSU undergoes a national search for an individual to serve as both dean of the OSU College of Osteopathic Medicine and provost of the Center for Health Sciences.   

Hargis emphasized that the medical education and training programs at the OSU College of Osteopathic Medicine, which is part of the Center for Health Sciences, will not be affected by the change. “Our nationally recognized medical school will remain focused on our mission of producing primary care physicians for rural and under-served Oklahoma,” he said.

Because of Barnett’s talents and background as a private businessman, public servant and community leader in Tulsa, Hargis said the move will strengthen both OSU campuses and simplify both operations.

Barnett was the chief negotiator for the OSU Medical Center Trust in its acquisition of the OSU Medical Center, giving him a strong appreciation and understanding of the vital work done by the OSU College of Osteopathic Medicine.

“I have great respect for the life-changing work being done by the Center of Health Sciences and the OSU College of Osteopathic Medicine.” Barnett said. “I am excited about this new responsibility and the promise it presents for OSU. We have strong, caring employee teams at both campuses and I look forward to working with them to improve the work we do and the value we provide.”

By Joseph Dunn

(Feb. 22, 2010, STILLWATER, Okla.) – Matthew Allen, a botany doctoral student at Oklahoma State University, has been learning lessons about the Tallgrass Prairie Preserve in Osage County, Okla., for more than four years.

Allen recorded the preserve’s history in a new book titled Lessons from the Prairie: Research at The Nature Conservancy’s Tallgrass Prairie Reserve, which includes research to aid scientists in their own studies.

Before now, no publications had summarized what is known of the preserve’s ecology, Allen said. So with more than 160 scientific publications produced since the late 1980s, his goal was to summarize and explain the large body of research.
Allen, a native of Sterling, Colo., co-authored the publication with Mike Palmer, of the OSU Department of Botany; Ulrich Melcher, OSU Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology; and Robert Hamilton, The Nature Conservancy.

The book was supported by the OSU College of Arts & Sciences, OSU Vice President for Research and Technology Transfer, and National Science Foundation. It was published by the Oklahoma Academy of Science. Electronic copies are available at http://ecology.okstate.edu/tgp_booklet_web.pdf.

The OSU Department of Botany is one of 24 departments in the College of Arts & Sciences. To learn more visit http://cas.okstate.edu.

Please see a photo of Matthew Allen by visiting our FlickrFlickr site! http://www.flickr.com/photos/ostatenews/4379635738/