Highlights through the years
2020
Transformational gift from alumni leads to new name for OSU’s agriculture college
January 15, 2020
Oklahoma State University and alumni Kayleen and Larry Ferguson announced a $50 million gift from the Ferguson Family Foundation that will transform the College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources in a variety of ways, including a new name – the Ferguson College of Agriculture. The funds will create a $25 million endowment for the college’s operations and $25 million to kick-start the New Frontiers capital fundraising campaign for an innovative research and teaching building.
OSU announces new College of Education and Human Sciences
January 24, 2020
The Oklahoma A&M Board of Regents approved creating the College of Education and Human Sciences, combining the College of Education, Health and Aviation and the College of Human Sciences at OSU. “This brings together the vast knowledge and skills of two outstanding colleges,” OSU President Burns Hargis said. “The new College of Education and Human Sciences combines our passion, expertise and resources to better deliver on our land-grant mission and serve our students and the world.”
OSU announces new Ray and Linda Booker Flight Center
March 7, 2020
Oklahoma State announced a $1 million naming gift from Ray and Linda Booker during a special groundbreaking ceremony for the new flight training center, set to officially open by fall 2021. The new flight center will serve as a premiere resource for students pursuing degrees in aviation education. The 11,600-square-foot facility will include private rooms for individual flight debriefings between students and flight instructors and encourage on-site group instruction and discussions.
OSU responds to global pandemic
March 12, 2020
In response to COVID-19, OSU began conducting classes online the two weeks following spring break. That marked the beginning of historic changes that took place the remainder of the year. OSU went online with classes the rest of the spring semester, put in place its comprehensive Cowboys Coming Back plan for the fall and held virtual commencements in the spring and fall. OSU was a leader in statewide testing for COVID and continued to carry out its land-grant mission of education, research and extension.
OSU senior named Truman Scholar
April 9, 2020
Adrienne Blakey has received the Truman Scholarship, the premier U.S. graduate fellowship for those pursuing careers as public service leaders. Truman Scholars are recognized for their academic excellence, leadership and campus and community service. Blakey is OSU’s 18th Truman Scholar. An Honors College senior in the Ferguson College of Agriculture, Blakey is pursuing dual degrees in plant and soil science with a concentration in agronomic business and another in agricultural communications
NASA names OSU lead institution for strategic research initiative
April 15, 2020
NASA has recognized a team of OSU researchers with the University Leadership Initiative Award. OSU is one of five university teams to receive the honor and a share of $32.8 million in funding over the next four years to address some of NASA’s strategic research initiatives. As the lead institution for this initiative, OSU will receive $5.2 million. OSU’s team of faculty members and students aims to improve real-time weather forecasting of low-level winds and turbulence in both rural and urban environments.
OSU/A&M Board of Regents approves removal of Murray’s name from campus
June 26, 2020
The OSU/A&M Board of Regents unanimously voted to remove the name “Murray” from Murray Hall and North Murray Hall on OSU’s campus. The buildings were named after Oklahoma’s ninth governor, William H. “Alfalfa Bill” Murray, who had a record of advocacy for racist policies including segregation and the promotion of Jim Crow laws. “Today’s decision to remove Murray’s name is an important step to eliminate any actual or symbol of racism on OSU’s campus,” said OSU President Burns Hargis.
Oklahoma State University forms technology collaboration with Baker Hughes
July 28, 2020
Baker Hughes has donated its Energy Innovation Center in downtown Oklahoma City to Oklahoma State University as part of a technology collaboration that will drive cross-industry collaboration and innovation. The collaboration will bring industry and academic experts under one roof, creating experiential learning opportunities for OSU students and supporting Baker Hughes researchers in applying technology-driven solutions for energy and industrial sectors.
OSU again wins national diversity honor
September 1, 2020
Oklahoma State’s commitment to creating a culture of inclusion is again being nationally recognized. INSIGHT Into Diversity magazine, the oldest and largest diversity publication and website in higher education, has recognized OSU as a 2020 Higher Education Excellence in Diversity Award recipient and a 2020 Diversity Champion. OSU is one of seven institutions across the country and the only university in Oklahoma to have earned this prestigious award for nine consecutive years.
OSU enrollment rises despite the global pandemic
September 1, 2020
OSU enrollment is up by more than 360 students and retention is at an all-time high despite the challenges of a fall semester with a hybrid of online and in-person classes. The university saw a 1.5 percent bump in enrollment this fall compared with fall 2019. The combined student enrollment of the Tulsa and Stillwater campuses is now at 24,405. The university is retaining 84.9 percent of its first-time, full-time undergraduates who started at OSU last year.
Burns Hargis announces plans to retire as OSU president
October 23, 2020
OSU President Burns Hargis announced his retirement plans at the regular meeting of the OSU/A&M Board of Regents in Stillwater. Hargis will remain in office until June 30, at which time the board expects to have a successor named. Hargis, the second OSU graduate to serve as president, became OSU’s 18th president on March 10, 2008. In 12-plus years, Hargis and his wife, First Cowgirl Ann, have guided OSU to historic growth in enrollment, fundraising, facilities, campus beautification, and much more.
Two OSU buildings renamed to honor civil rights pioneer
October 23, 2020
Two buildings on the OSU-Stillwater campus were renamed to honor civil rights pioneer Nancy Randolph Davis, the first African-American student to attend then-Oklahoma A&M College in 1949. The OSU/A&M Board of Regents approved the renaming of the Human Sciences and Human Sciences West buildings to Nancy Randolph Davis and Nancy Randolph Davis West. Davis earned a master’s degree in what was then called home economics and taught in Oklahoma high schools for more than 40 years.
Hardesty family donates $2 million to OSU for creation of new research center in Tulsa
October 26, 2020
A $2 million gift from the Hardesty Family Foundation will fuel transformative research at OSU Medicine’s National Center for Wellness & Recovery. In recognition of the contribution, OSU is naming a recently acquired 49,000-square-foot medical complex in south Tulsa the Hardesty Center for Clinical Research and Neuroscience. As the national leader in addiction research, OSU Medicine has a goal to unlock the mystery of addiction through groundbreaking biomedical and clinical research.
OSU unveils statue of legendary alum and donor Boone Pickens
November 28, 2020
A catalyst for the rise of Oklahoma State football and a presence at every Cowboy home game for years, the late Boone Pickens was honored with a statue prior to OSU’s game against Texas Tech. The nine-foot-tall bronze statue is located immediately west of Boone Pickens Stadium. Pickens is the third person memorialized with a statue on the Oklahoma State campus, joining former president Henry Bennett and OSU’s first African-American student, Nancy Randolph Davis.
OSU launches new research institute to develop therapies for humans and animals
December 8, 2020
Oklahoma State’s College of Veterinary Medicine launched a new institute that will fulfill One Health research by doing parallel investigations in both humans and animals. OSU’s Institute for Translational and Emerging Research in Advanced Comparative Therapy (INTERACT) is focused on developing and translating new discoveries into therapies for patients. “We’re at the cutting edge of research in this area,” said OSU President Burns Hargis, who viewed a demonstration at the launch celebration.
$120 million in federal funding approved for new veterans hospital in Tulsa
December 28, 2020
Congress approved and President Trump signed into law a $120 million federal appropriation to build a new, much-needed veterans hospital in Tulsa. The Veterans Hospital in Tulsa is the work of a collaboration among the federal government, state of Oklahoma, city of Tulsa, private philanthropy, and Oklahoma State University. The modern 275,000 square-foot, 58-bed medical-surgical hospital for veterans will be located downtown on the expanded OSU Medical Center campus.