Industrial Engineering Donors Pool Resources to Raise $250,000 Professorship at OSU

Professorship honors former department head through perpetual gifts

Oklahoma State University announced today $250,000 received from 20 donors to create an industrial engineering and management (IE&M) professorship at OSU honoring former IE&M department head Dr. Wilson Bentley.  Once fully matched dollar-for-dollar by T. Boone Pickens’ $100 million chair match commitment, as well as the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education, the gift will have the impact of $1 million in endowed funds.

The Wilson Bentley Professorship in Industrial Engineering & Management will be housed within OSU’s College of Engineering, Architecture and Technology.  Contributions to the professorship honored Bentley, a “giant” in engineering education, and will enable the college to offer an exceptional faculty member a position of honor and prestige.

“The response from our alumni and friends has exceeded our wildest expectations,” said OSU President Burns Hargis.  “Inspired by Boone Pickens’ astounding generosity, donors answered the call to make a lasting difference and open a new and exciting chapter at OSU.  We sincerely appreciate the combined efforts of these engineering donors to bring this professorship to fruition for the benefit of future students and faculty within the school of engineering.” 

In order to take full advantage of the state’s dollar-for-dollar match, and make the most significant impact on OSU academics, donors made the gift prior to the July 1 change in the state’s endowed chair matching program.  This gift is part of the $66.8 million in endowed faculty gifts OSU announced recently.  

Bentley served OSU’s engineering college for more than 23 years from 1957-1971, 14 of those years as head of the department of industrial engineering and management.  Supporters credit him with influencing a generation of engineers and helped them develop their potential as pioneers of industry throughout the country.

“Professor Wilson Bentley had a dramatic and profound effect on the careers of many of the students he mentored,” said Karl N. Reid, dean of the College of Engineering, Architecture & Technology.  “His career advice for many was ‘priceless.’  He left an indelible impact on the field of Industrial Engineering & Management as well.  He and professor H. G. Thuesen were pioneers in the development of graduate and research programs in engineering at OSU.”

Jean Van Delinder, chair of the OSU Faculty Council, said, “OSU is poised for growth and further prominence but to realize its full potential we must continue to attract and retain top scholars and researchers. These chairs highlight the important role that scholarship and teaching play at Oklahoma State University, and they are made possible through the generous support of donors who value excellence in scholarship and want to help OSU continue to nurture a strong faculty.”

Endowed professorships and chairs are academic designations which provide support for faculty salary, graduate assistantships, equipment and research needs, as well as other support.  These endowed faculty positions allow a university to attract and retain the best and the brightest academic minds in the world.

Oklahoma’s only university with a statewide presence, 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.  OSU has more than 32,000 students across its system and nearly 21,000 on its Stillwater campus; with students from all 50 states and around 110 nations.  Established in 1890, OSU has graduated more than 200,000 students who have made a lasting impact on Oklahoma and the world.  

The Oklahoma State University 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. For more information access the Foundation’s Web site at OSUgiving.com.

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