STATE magazine - Fall 2017

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Are you ready to

FLY

STILLWATER?

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More Cowboys are reconnecting with their roots and coming home to Stillwater with direct daily American Airlines flights from Dallas/Fort-Worth. Since the service began one year ago, several thousand flyers have experienced the simplicity and convenience of flying at Stillwater Regional Airport.

With free parking, hotel shuttle services and quick check-in, it is now easier than ever to travel to Cowboy country. Book your flight today!

flystillwaterok.com

AN ESTATE-PLANNING TIP FROM

Pistol Pete

Any account with a beneficiary designation (such as retirement funds, life insurance policies and annuities) can be used to support OSU.

» Easy to do » Easy to give to OSU » Easy on your heirs » Easy to learn To discover more, visit OSUgiving.com/estateplanning or call the OSU Foundation Gift Planning Office at 800-622-4678.

Fall 2017, Volume 13, No. 1 • statemagazine.okstate.edu

Welcome to the Fall 2017 issue of STATE magazine, your source of information from the OSU Alumni Association, the OSU Foundation and University Marketing. On the cover, Miss Oklahoma Triana Browne-Hearrell returned to Stillwater to share how she is preparing for the Miss America competition. Preliminary contests begin September 6 with the final night broadcast live on ABC at 8 p.m. CST on September 10. Read about how this track and field student-athlete and OSU graduate is bridging cultural divides one conversation at a time. (Cover photography by Phil Shockley)

Miss Oklahoma Triana Browne-Hearrell

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From track shoes to stilettos, Miss Oklahoma Triana Browne-Hearrell is running a new race as she steps out of her comfort zone to compete for the Miss America crown. The OSU alumna was featured in The Cowboy Way in the Spring 2016 edition of STATE magazine when she was the reigning Miss OSU. During her senior season on the Cowgirl track team, she blossomed in the heptathlon at the Big 12 finals.

Read more about how she is “not afraid to step into the unknown” in our cover story on page 34.

S PE CI A L S E C TION

Flavors of Stillwater The culinary landscape of Stillwater is transforming with the Robert M. Kerr Food and Agricultural Products Center and the Riata Center for Entrepreneurship helping ideas become reality. The FAPC is celebrating 20 years of service including assisting Billy Goat Ice Cream and 1907 Meat Co. OSU alumnus Russ Teubner is mixing up the gastronomical delights in town with his Backstage Chef Series in a renovated historical building. On campus, the Wine Forum of Oklahoma kicked off the grand opening for the new Wayne Hirst Center for Beverage Education.

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C OW BOY C OLLE C T ION 23 Filmmaker Documenting Coach Sutton’s Life

42 Giving Back Changes a Life

Director Christopher Hunt wants to bring former coach Eddie Sutton’s untold story to the screen.

Piyush Patel’s gift to OSU graduating senior Danielle Foster to pay off her student loans gives her a debt-free start.

30 Meandering Meditation

Two labyrinths offer peaceful respite on campus and in The Botanic Garden at OSU.

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Connected For Life

OSU alumni Kent Gardner and Tony LoPresto keep their friendship alive as they lead the Alumni Association board.

TV personality Joan Lunden offered encouragement and inspiration at annual symposium.

32 Valero Donates $1.25 Million

50 Doel Reed Center for the Arts

The gift is to enhance a new undergraduate lab facility in the College of Engineering, Architecture and Technology.

46 Women for OSU

Stillwater is benefiting from outreach activities from artists in New Mexico.

52 Masterpiece Moments

Creative party for the OSU Museum of Art draws a crowd.

38 National Awards

OSU students are claiming some big wins in nationwide scholastic competitions.

66 Give Orange

OSU’s first day-of-giving event raises nearly $400,000.

40 Partnership Produces First Graduates

The Class of 2017 included the first group of students to earn a bachelor’s degree from both OSU and China Agricultural University.

68 Biting Research

T. rex from the Age of Dinosaurs is the center of a modern tooth analysis.

100 Proud & Immortal

OSU recognizes its most generous donors.

D E PA R T ME N T S Letters to the Editor

120

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Veterinary Medicine

64

Socially Orange

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The Cowboy Way

71

President’s Letter

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Recipe 83

STATEment 8

Alumni Chapters

92

Campus News

Chapter Leader Profile

96

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Research 10

Legacy Link

97

Game Day Guide

12

Class Notes

102

Casting a Cowboy Hero

POSSE Replay

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In Memoriam/Passages

108

Wellness with Ann Hargis

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Book Corner

110

KOSU: Uniquely Oklahoma

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History 113

OSU-Tulsa

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O-STATE Stories

Oklahoma artist Harold Holden wants to make his final sculpture one of his hero, Frank Eaton, the inspiration for Pistol Pete.

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OSUIT 58

OSU Library

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OSU-OKC 60

Donor Impact Spotlight

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OSU Medicine

Traveling Cowboys

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Oklahoma State University is a land grant system of interdisciplinary programs preparing students for success. As Oklahoma’s only university with a statewide presence, OSU improves lives through integrated teaching, research and outreach. OSU has more than 36,000 students across its five-campus system, including 23,000 on its Stillwater campus, with students from all 50 states and around 120 nations. Established in 1890, OSU has graduated more than 255,000 students to serve the state of Oklahoma, the nation and the world.

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UNIVERSITY MARKETING Kyle Wray / Vice President of Enrollment Management & Marketing Erin Petrotta / Director of Marketing and Advertising and Enrollment Management Communications Megan Horton / Director of Digital Marketing and Social Media Elizabeth Keys / Editor Paul V. Fleming, Valerie Kisling & Dave Malec / Design Phil Shockley & Gary Lawson / Photography Karolyn Bolay, Shelby Holcomb & Dorothy Pugh / Editorial Adrianna Cunningham / Intern Brandee Cazzelle, April Cunningham, Pam Longan, Leslie McClurg & Kurtis Mason / Marketing University Marketing Office / 305 Whitehurst, Stillwater, OK 74078-1024 / 405-744-6262 / www.okstate.edu / statemagazine.org / editor@okstate.edu / osu.advertising@okstate.edu Contributors / Kim Archer, Sally Asher, Julie Barnard, Holly Bergbower, Alexis Birdsong, Derinda Blakeney, Kelly Burley, Bonnie Cain-Wood, Kendria Cost, Mandy Gross, Todd Johnson, Jeff Joiner, Faith Kelley, Christy Lang, Sara Milligan, Jim Mitchell, Sandy Pantlik, Brian Petrotta, Sara Plummer, Lyn Putnam, Allie Raney, Chelsea Robinson, Kimberly Roblin, Tyler Siems, Gary Shutt, Don Stotts, Michael Sutton, Michelle Talamantes, Kandace Taylor, Leigh Thompson, Terry Tush, Mark Waits & Kim Woodard

O S U A L U M N I A S S O C I AT I O N Kent Gardner / Chair Tony LoPresto / Vice Chair Phil Kennedy / Immediate Past Chair Chris Batchelder / President and CEO Jace Dawson / Executive Vice President and Chief Strategy Officer Pam Davis / Vice President and Chief Programs Officer Treca Baetz, Chris Batchelder, John Bartley, James Boggs, Gregg Bradshaw, Larry Briggs, Burns Hargis, Kirk Jewell, Angela Kouplen, Mel Martin, Travis Moss, Tina Parkhill, H.J. Reed, Tom Ritchie, David Ronck & Tina Walker / Board of Directors Lacy Branson, Chase Carter, Leanna Smith & Jillianne Tebow / Communications and Marketing OSU Alumni Association / 201 ConocoPhillips OSU Alumni Center, Stillwater, OK 74078-7043 / 405-744-5368 / orangeconnection.org / info@orangeconnection.org

O S U F O U N DAT I O N Lyndon Taylor / Chair

PATRIOTIC DISPL AY

I am interested in the photo on pages 46-47 of the Spring 2017 STATE magazine.

I was hoping to make a larger picture to put in a frame.

My dad (Robert Killam) went through the ROTC program at Oklahoma A&M in the early 1950s and served in the Air Force.

Greg Killam Houston, Texas OSU Class of 1982 Editor’s Note: The late Robert Killam earned a bachelor’s degree in business in 1954. He served 21 years as an Air Force pilot, earning the Distinguished Flying Cross in recognition of extraordinary achievement as an aircraft commander in Vietnam in 1965.

Kirk Jewell / President Donna Koeppe / Vice President of Administration & Treasurer Chris Campbell / Senior Associate Vice President of Information Strategy Shane Crawford / Senior Associate Vice President of Leadership Gifts David Mays / Senior Associate Vice President of Central Development Paula Voyles / Senior Associate Vice President of Constituency Programs Blaire Atkinson / Senior Associate Vice President of Development Services Robyn Baker / Vice President and General Counsel Pam Guthrie / Assistant Vice President of Human Resources Deborah Adams, Mark Allen, Chris Batchelder, Bryan Begley, Bryan Close, Jan Cloyde, Patrick Cobb, Joe Eastin, Jennifer Grigsby, John Groendyke, Helen Hodges, David Houston, Gary Huneryager, A.J. Jacques, Kirk Jewell, Diana Laing, John Linehan, Joe Martin, Ross McKnight, Becky Steen, Lyndon Taylor, Phil Terry, Stephen Tuttle, Jay Wiese & Jerry Winchester / Trustees Shelly Cameron, Jennifer Kinnard, Chris Lewis, Jacob Longan, Amanda O’Toole Mason, Michael Molholt, Matthew J. Morgan & Benton Rudd / Marketing and Communications OSU Foundation / 400 South Monroe, P.O. Box 1749, Stillwater, OK 74076-1749 / 800-622-4678 / OSUgiving.com / info@OSUgiving.com STATE magazine is published three times a year (Fall, Winter, Spring) by Oklahoma State University, 305 Whitehurst, Stillwater, OK 74078. The magazine is produced by University Marketing, the OSU Alumni Association and the OSU Foundation, and is mailed to current members of the OSU Alumni Association. Postage is paid at Stillwater, OK, and additional mailing offices. Magazine subscriptions are available only by membership in the OSU Alumni Association. Membership cost is $45. Call 405-744-5368 or mail a check to 201 ConocoPhillips OSU Alumni Center, Stillwater OK 74078-7043. To change a mailing address, visit orangeconnection.org/ update or call 405-744-5368.

Oklahoma State University, in compliance with Title VI and VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Executive Order 11246 as amended, and Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (Higher Education Act), the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, and other federal and state laws and regulations, does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, genetic information, sex, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, disability, or status as a veteran in any of its policies, practices or procedures. This provision includes, but is not limited to admissions, employment, financial aid and educational services. The Director of Equal Opportunity has been designated to handle inquiries regarding nondiscrimination policies. Contact the Director of Equal Opportunity at 408 Whitehurst, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK 74078-1035; telephone 405-744-5371; or email eeo@okstate.edu. Any person (student, faculty, or staff) who believes that discriminatory practices have been engaged in based on gender may discuss his or her concerns and file informal or formal complaints of possible violations of Title IX with OSU’s Title IX Coordinator at 405-744-9154.

This publication, issued by Oklahoma State University as authorized by the vice president of enrollment management and marketing, was printed by Royle Printing Co. at a cost of $0.97 per issue: 35,020/August 2017/#6950. / Copyright © 2017, STATE magazine. All rights reserved.

Higher Education Marketing Report / 2017 Publications Silver Award Oklahoma Society of Professional Journalists / 2016 Best Public Relations Magazine Oklahoma College Public Relations Association / 2016 Magazine Excellence Award Member / Council for Advancement and Support of Education

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DEAR READERS,

Pictures of the patriotic display on the OSU library lawn garnered thousands of shares throughout social media. The public salute to the military is one way the university is showing support for veterans.

Rick Hansen, OSU coordinator of Veteran Student Academic Services, is leading programs on campus for military-affiliated families. A new fund has been established by an anonymous alumna and her husband, creating the Veteran Appreciation Scholarship Fund.

“What many don’t realize is that GI Bill benefits are limited to 36 months of study, whether they’re used by a veteran or one of the veteran’s dependents,” Hansen says.

The largest numbers of veterans on campus are enrolled in the College of Engineering, Architecture and Technology, seeking degrees that often require more than four years of study. Many exhaust their benefits while earning their undergraduate degrees, and less than 10 percent have benefits available for their continued education. To help veterans continue their educations, send contributions to OSU Foundation, 400 S. Monroe, Stillwater OK 74074. Designate fund #20-00380 VETERAN APPRECIATION SCHOLARSHIP or give online at osugiving.com/veteranscholarships.

Best regards, Elizabeth Keys STATE Editor

#okstate What’s Your Orange Passion?

PHOTO / TYLER VAN ARSDALE

#GiveOrange Thank you for supporting your passions at GiveOrange.okstate.edu!

#GoPokes President Burns Hargis and OSU First Cowgirl, Ann Hargis, are passionate about seeing OSU students succeed.

#EarthDay “Be the change you wish to see in this world.” — Gandhi @okstatealumni

Memorable Stories

Recognized by “The Princeton Review” for providing students the “best bang for their tuition buck,” we are committed to a quality education at an affordable price: okla.st/OSUvalue

@OSUAthletics Cowboys head to NCAA Regional

filled with familiar foes.

Campus Sparklers Oklahoma State University @okstate @okstateu OStateTV @okstateu Oklahoma State University @okstateu @okstateu

Miss Oklahoma Triana Browne-Hearrell

Visit okla.st/socialdir for more social media connections.

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Oklahoma State University’s campuses are abuzz as we launch the fall semester. We are excited to welcome another large freshman class of students from Oklahoma and beyond.

From our agricultural programs and food safety

Our cover story showcases the accomplishments of

efforts, to our nutritional studies and hotel and

one of our talented recent graduates, Triana Browne-

restaurant program, OSU has a strong connection

Hearrell. Triana was a standout student-athlete, Miss

to food. This issue of STATE spotlights some of that

OSU and now reigns as Miss Oklahoma. We wish her

important work, which is central to our land grant

the best at the Miss America competition in September.

mission of teaching, research and extension.

Oklahoma State University’s Robert M. Kerr Food

In closing, we mourn the passing of one of our most successful and generous alumni, Neal Patterson.

& Agricultural Products Center is an important asset

Neal co-founded Cerner Corporation, which revolu-

for our state and is celebrating its 20th anniversary

tionized the computerization of medical records. Neal

this year. The center’s mentoring has helped more than

died of complications from cancer on July 9 at age 67.

1,000 processors and entrepreneurs improve or launch

We extend our deepest sympathies to his wife, Jeanne,

their businesses. We also highlight several other entre-

and their entire family.

preneurial companies with connections to OSU. This special food section also celebrates the Wayne

First Cowgirl Ann and I encourage you to visit campus and once again experience the fun and excite-

Hirst Center for Beverage Education grand opening in

ment of a fall semester at OSU. Thanks for your

the School of Hotel and Restaurant Administration in

support.

the new north wing of the College of Human Sciences.

This year’s Wine Forum took place in this beautiful

Go Pokes!

new facility.

In each issue, STATE magazine is pleased to

Burns Hargis

recognize the work and generosity of OSU alumni

OSU President

and donors. In this issue, we look at a fundraising effort for Harold Holden’s “Pistol Pete” Frank Eaton statue. We also commend Piyush Patel’s commencement address this spring about paying it forward and demonstrating it by announcing that he and his wife were paying off a student’s loans.

OSU President Burns Hargis and Pistol Pete join Eskimo Joe, right, and Buffy, left, at “Burgers with Burns” in the Student Union courtyard.

PHOTO / GARY LAWSON

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The Veteran Student Academic Services office supports nearly 1,000 Oklahoma State University students transitioning from military service to the classroom.

Programs provide services and support as well as creating greater recognition and awareness for veterans and military-affiliated students on campus. One of the main goals of the office is to coordinate with campus, community, state and federal organizations to provide services to veterans.

Show a veteran your support today by giving to the Veteran Student Academic Services or by sponsoring one of the program’s annual events.

OSUgiving.com/veterans

Dear OSU Alumni and Friends,

PHOTO / PHIL SHOCKLEY

We’ve been told something magical happens when someone steps foot on the Oklahoma State University campus.

No matter if it’s the first time, the last time or somewhere in between, people tend to walk a little prouder with their spirits lifted as they are surrounded by the same places OSU legends like Barry Sanders, Michele Smith, Henry Iba, Nancy Randolph Davis, Garth Brooks and John Smith walked. It’s impossible to come home and not leave feeling inspired by your fellow Cowboys.

We believe this to be true, and there is no greater time to walk our beautiful campus again than during OSU’s greatest tradition: Homecoming. This October, the OSU Alumni Association invites you to celebrate what makes our graduates proud and our alma mater immortal at Homecoming 2017: ‘Herald Your Fame.’ Thousands of alumni like you will return to campus to celebrate with current and future Cowboys.

OSU’s 97th Homecoming celebration theme was announced in April during the OSU Foundation’s first Give Orange crowdfunding campaign, which lasted 1,890 minutes. You can read more about the event on pages 66-67.

It was no surprise the Homecoming Endowment received the highest number of donations; Cowboys love Homecoming!

The future of this tradition rests with all of us, and we encourage you to make a gift to help ensure the next generation of Cowboys can experience it as we do today.

Homecoming is also a great time to bring a prospective student to campus. The trees take on a special hue of orange in the fall, and hundreds of mums signal the arrival of this special event. When you plan your return for Walkaround or the Sea of Orange Parade, consider scheduling a campus tour with a student you know who would make a great Cowboy.

We’ve made it easy to make your impact on “America’s Greatest Homecoming Celebration.” Go to ORANGECONNECTION.org/homecoming for quick access to an event schedule and game tickets, links to the Homecoming and campus beautification endowments, and the ability to schedule a campus tour during Homecoming week.

Now is the best time to come home to Oklahoma State. Join us for Homecoming 2017: ‘Herald Your Fame’ October 5-14 in Stillwater!

See you at Homecoming!

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Chris Batchelder

Kirk Jewell

Kyle Wray

President OSU Alumni Association

President OSU Foundation

OSU Vice President for Enrollment Management & Marketing

FALL 20 17

PHOTO / JASON WALLACE

Trumpet professor Ryan Gardner, left, joins students Noah Mennenga and Natalie Upton, right, who captured top honors in national competition.

APPAREL DESIGN AND MERCHANDISING PROGRAMS EARN NATIONAL RANKINGS

“The trumpet program, and specifiAt the 2017 National Trumpet cally Dr. Gardner, were two of the Competition in Denver, OSU trumpets biggest draws for me,” Mennenga says. won at least one first place finish in a The direction of the program since collegiate category for the fifth time in Gardner’s arrival in 2010 has risen. four years, the only university program Holding degrees from the University of to win every collegiate category. That Rochester and Rice University, Gardner success is attracting more music earned his doctorate of musical arts students to Oklahoma State University. degree from the Manhattan School Natalie Upton, a senior trumpet of Music in 2008. After beginning his performance major who won the Solo teaching career at the University of Undergraduate Division in Denver, was Arkansas in Fort Smith, Gardner was set to attend the University of North drawn to OSU by the consistent quality Texas before she visited OSU and met of the program and the enthusiasm of trumpet professor Ryan Gardner.

“I lived near UNT, so I applied there. its students.

“OSU has always been a topBut my parents were alums at OSU, notch program with great ensembles,” and they wanted me to apply at OSU,” Gardner says.

Upton says. “As I came up for my audiGardner views OSU and its music tion and met Dr. Gardner and the staff department as a place where talented here, it was amazing. It’s very personal, and vested faculty eager to teach are the one-on-one time, I’m able to have paired with curious students who are a lot more time with Dr. Gardner as a eager to work hard, to listen and learn, professor.” to play and teach at the highest of levels.

Noah Mennenga, a sophomore “One of the reasons I think we have trumpet performance major from seen the success we have had is that we, Cottage Grove, Wisconsin, also credas a program, set goals for ourselves and ited Gardner with his decision to consistently meet them,” Gardner says. travel the 816 miles from his home to “Once we’ve identified what the level is, Stillwater. we have been able to achieve that.”

PHOTO / GARY LAWSON

OSU trumpets play a luring tune

The Euphoria fashion show highlighted student projects from the apparel design and merchandising department. The OSU programs are among the highest ranked in the country, according to Fashion-Schools.org.

New home of

Please mark your calendar to join the Spears School of Business for our time capsule ceremony for our new building.

Friday, September 22, 2017 - 4 p.m.

New Business Building (Note: Time capsule will be sealed in the building at a later date; this ceremony is only an opportunity to view the items included in the time capsule.)

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Magruder Plots

PHOTOS / TODD JOHNSON

The Magruder Plots Field Day celebrating the 125th harvest featured the three most recent custodians of the research fields including current keeper, Brian Arnall, left, and past caretakers Robert Westerman and Bill Raun, right. The plots, at the university’s Agronomy Research Farm just west of the main campus, originally were planted in 1892 by A.C. Magruder, the first professor of agriculture at Oklahoma A&M College.

The fields were planted to obtain information about the soil’s ability to continue to produce good yields of wheat without fertilization. The wheat plots are the third-longest running field trial in the United States and have been a landmark for people traveling eastward into the community on State Highway 51.

Do kids of single dads face higher risks?

Erin Wood, a psychology doctoral student at Oklahoma State University, and her adviser, Shelia Kennison, are studying the safety of children raised by single dads.

According to Wood, homes headed by single fathers have increased 900 percent to more than 2.6 million since 1960, but research on the impact to children is

lacking. A recent Canadian study showed that single fathers are at twice the risk of physical and mental health problems compared to dads in two-parent households.

In her research, Wood used an anonymous survey of single dads to better understand their experiences raising children.

New fuel technology shows promise Ajay Kumar, associate professor of biosystems and agricultural engineering, and Allen Apblett, professor of chemistry, have teamed up to develop a novel technology to convert agricultural waste, biomass such as switchgrass and red cedar, and natural gas into a liquid fuel capable of replacing petroleum-based vehicle fuels.

Development of the technology is taking place at OSU’s Biobased Products and Energy Center, which focuses on

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energy development using bio-based products. Kumar says previous technologies with this idea required large amounts of energy and were expensive. The new technology is more efficient and cost effective.

Agricultural economics professors are working with Kumar and Apblett to study the technology’s economic feasibility.

NEW WHEAT VARIETY Oklahoma State University’s Division of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources released two new hard red winter wheat varieties, Smith’s Gold and Spirit Rider. Smith’s Gold is named in honor of OSU head wrestling coach John Smith. Wheat is Oklahoma’s largest cash crop, with more than 5 million acres of winter wheat sown annually.

A breakthrough in printing 3D glass

NSF awards grant for frog study The National Science Foundation has awarded a three-year, $392,648 grant to Daniel Moen, assistant professor in the Department of Integrative Biology, to support a large-scale, international study on the importance of several factors involved in habitat change and the evolution of frogs and toads. The project will also support the training of undergraduates, graduate students, and postdoctoral researchers in a diversity of subjects and will include a summer research program for undergraduates at OSU. The primary goals of the study are to use evolutionary relationships to estimate major shifts between frog habitat types, for example, living in water versus in trees, and to explore the cause of these shifts.

The project will also address the factors that explain large-scale patterns of ecological and morphological evolution across frogs and toads around the world.

“A major purpose of estimating evolutionary relationships among organisms is to understand patterns of character evolution such as habitat change, yet relatively little is known about why specific patterns

are observed,” Moen says. “Are some ecological strategies — such as those that are more specialized — evolutionary dead ends? Are transitions between others more common? Why are changes between some types many times more frequent than others?”

Along with John Wiens, professor of ecology and evolutionary biology at the University of Arizona, Moen’s lab group will address these questions in frogs and develop statistical tools to examine them in other groups of organisms. The work will include gathering data on frog body forms, from specimens in museum collections around the country, conducting fieldwork in four countries (Cameroon, Madagascar, Spain, and the United States) to collect data on jumping and swimming performance, and estimating a new evolutionary tree of relationships among frog families.

Moen will also work with an electronic arts class to develop an outreach video on the project, in collaboration with Andy Mattern, assistant professor in the Department of Art, Graphic Design and Art History.

Jim Smay OSU materials science and engineering professor Jim Smay has joined colleagues at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory to develop a 3D printing process to produce fabricated glass with improved transparency.

The technique produces transparent glass with sub-millimeter precision, which is impossible in conventional manufacturing. Smay says the process involves extruding a gel ink, developed by the researchers, through a fine-gauge hypodermic needle at room temperature. The material is then heated. Current technologies require extruding molten glass at 1,800 degrees Fahrenheit.

Smay is a faculty member in the School of Materials Science and Engineering at the Helmerich Research Center at OSU-Tulsa.

When bosses abuse employees Research by Rebecca Greenbaum, associate professor of management in OSU’s Spears School of Business, and collaborators shows that under the right conditions, just about any supervisor can be abusive to his or her employees. The research, published last year in the Academy of Management Journal, suggests abusive bosses may not be able to control themselves. Supervisors can feel provoked by employees “whose behaviors, ranging from gossip to public

embarrassment, impede their bosses’ abilities to control their abusive responses,” the researchers wrote in the Harvard Business Review.

Abuse can also be heaped on employees the supervisor feels won’t help meet business targets or are high performers but behave badly. Other conditions, such as sleep deprivation or conflicts at home, can set off anyone at work, the researchers wrote.

Rebecca Greenbaum

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CO w BOY

Corral

Cowboy fans of all ages can enjoy this FREE, pregame pep rally featuring Pistol Pete, the Cowboy Marching Band and Spirit Squads, plus Pictures with Bullet just outside the Alumni Center. Your countdown to kickoff begins here!

• 3 hours prior | Doors Open • 21/2 hours prior | Pep Rally • 2 hours prior | The Spirit Walk (Begins at Hester and Morrill intersection north to Boone Pickens Stadium) • 11/2 hours prior | Pictures with Bullet Food and drinks from Hideaway, Freddie Paul’s, Cake Crazy and Iron Monk are available for purchase.

Experience the ultimate in tailgating this football season in a reserved area of the OSU Alumni Center. Traditions Tailgate offers exclusive amenities including: • • • • •

All-you-can-eat buffet Complimentary beer and wine TVs and entertainment Reserved, covered parking (optional) Climate-controlled environment

Alumni Association members can purchase tickets at ORANGECONNECTION.org/traditionstailgate

AWAY GAME EVENTS Join the Sea of Orange on the road with the OSU Alumni Association!

WATCH PARTIES The Cowboy family gathers at locations all across the U.S. to cheer on the Pokes! Alumni Association chapter watch parties are posted the week of each game on our website at ORANGECONNECTION.org/ watchparty. Watch parties are also posted on the Orange Connection app. Download it today!

MEMBER TICKET OFFERS

Friday with the Family events take place the Friday night before an away football game at a local venue. Attendees are asked to register in advance and can enjoy food, entertainment and special guests from OSU athletics.

We also bring our famous pep rally to you!

Cowboy Corral on the Road begins three hours before kickoff. Make plans to join us for food and fun in your brightest orange!

y a d i Fr with

the

y l i m a F

Details on pregame events, tickets and accommodations will be posted on our away games page as they become available.

This news first published in the Spring 2017 issue of POSSE Magazine. To read other great stories, consider joining the POSSE. Annual donations to OSU athletics of $150 or more qualify for POSSE membership and include an annual subscription to POSSE Magazine.

Visit okstateposse.com for details.

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FALL 2017

AN EASYGOING MAN CLAD IN ORANGE REPOSES IN A BLACK RECLINER, SURROUNDED BY WALL-TO-WALL MEMORABILIA FROM OKLAHOMA STATE ATHLETICS. A ONE-EYED MUTT NAMED SAM (AFTER SAMMY DAVIS, JR.) SLEEPS CONTENTEDLY ON HIS LAP AS HIS OWNER POINTS OUT PRIZED POSSESSIONS. HUNDREDS OF VINTAGE ITEMS ADORN CORNER SHELVES. TCHOTCHKES OF ALL KINDS – BOBBLEHEAD FIGURINES, BUTTONS, BALLS AND BANKS – HARKEN BACK TO THE ERA OF AGGIES, EVEN TIGERS!

The Collector STORY BY CLAY BILLMAN PHOTOGRAPHY BY BRUCE WATERFIELD

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hat was once a 10x12 spare bedroom now holds a treasure-trove of OSU ephemera amongst two comfy leather chairs and a big-screen TV. Nary a square inch of space has gone uncovered.

There are framed felt pennants from nearly every Cowboy Football bowl game, along with schedule posters, trading cards, rally towels, glassware, concession cups, coffee mugs, ticket stubs, trash cans, clocks and lamps. Be careful not to trip over a patch of 1980s AstroTurf.

This is Doug Shivers’ domain. More time capsule than man cave, the nostalgia is palpable for those fond of fuzzy chaps and bucking broncs.

“Look around,” Shivers says. “It’s not historically significant things, necessarily. It’s fan items. Posters – they give them away. Pennants – they sell them at bowl games if you’re lucky enough to get one. The Big Eight clock was advertised in a football program. They gave

away the ‘Crank ’em up, Cowboys!’ towels in 1984. It’s just stuff for fans. I think it looks kinda cool when it’s on display in one place like this …

“I like to come in here, sit down, and watch a ballgame. It makes me happy.”

While Shivers downplays the historical significance of his collection, several items would find a fitting home in trophy cases on campus, namely a mini-megaphone featuring OAMC Tiger graphics (pre-1923) and a game-worn football jersey from the Jim Lookabaugh days.

“The megaphone has got to be pretty rare.

It’s the only one of its kind I’ve seen,” he says.

“A lot of people like autographs, and I’ve got Barry Sanders’ autograph on a 1988 game program. I have a basketball program from 1989 that Henry Iba signed.”

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Family Affair Shivers caught the collecting bug from his father, who used to take his sons to minor league games in Oklahoma City.

“I grew up in Bethany,” he says. “I was born in Springfield, Missouri, but mom and dad moved to Oklahoma City before I was one. My dad was an old basketball player at the University of Houston, so he liked to go to games. When I was a kid, we’d go to ’89ers games, Blazers hockey … and we would always get a program. And I saved a lot of those programs.”

The Putnam City West grad enrolled as a freshman at OSU in 1979 and continued to collect programs throughout his college days.

“When I started going to games at OSU, I’d get a program,” he recalls. “I had a place for them, and I would just set the latest one on the stack. Before long, that stack was pretty big.”

After graduating with a bachelor’s degree in business management, Shivers spent a number of years living out of state, with stints in Texas and Arizona. During that time, he attended as many Cowboy games as he could with his brother Dan, a 1990 OSU grad, keeping their northside midfield seats warm.

Doug and his wife, Cindi, moved back to Oklahoma City in 1994. It was then Shivers realized the extent of his habit.

“Dadgum if I didn’t have all these programs that I needed to take with me from Austin to Oklahoma City. And I kind of got re-interested in them. I looked at some of the old ones and thought, ‘These are kinda cool. I’m not going to get rid of them now.’”

His daughter Hannah came along in 1997.

And while the focus was on the family, the collecting continued.

These days, Shivers has settled down in Yukon, Oklahoma, working as the city clerk.

His job involves recordkeeping and research … much like his hobby.

Referring to a spreadsheet he keeps, Shivers notes that he has acquired 334 out of the 429 OSU home football game programs printed since 1940. He’s always on the lookout to add to the set.

“Some people call me a historian, but I don’t really set out to just research things and look up history,” he explains. “But when you gather up old things, if you’re interested in looking at them at all, you absorb some of it. And maybe I know more than some guys about OSU history, but I’m sure there’s plenty of fans out there who have seen more of it and experienced more of it and know more about it than I do.”

Online Finds Shivers says the dawn of the Information Age turned his personal archives into a public service.

“I would look at my programs occasionally, but it wasn’t something I did every day.

But then, the internet happened. And message boards happened, and people started talking about OSU sports. And I like to be where people are talking about OSU sports.”

Connecting with like-minded Pokes on popular fan forums, such as OrangePower.com, Shivers saw that he possessed a unique asset.

“For whatever it’s worth, I got a reputation for always being able to find a photo,” he says. “I had this resource, and it didn’t appear that anyone else did because nobody was putting pictures in these discussions. Every now and then, somebody would mention a player from the past, and I would look and see if I had a picture. If I did, I’d scan it and post it. People seemed to like that.

I think they probably like that more than just another guy’s opinion because everybody has those, and most people only listen to their own.

“They’re not my pictures. I’m not trying to sell them. They’re just things I have access to.

Why not share them with other OSU fans?”

Posting under the moniker “casdas” (a combination of his wife’s and his initials), Shivers says he gets frequent requests to find forgotten images. Part detective, part librarian, Shivers cross-references game programs, media guides and a number of Redskin yearbooks to locate past players or settle an online argument about uniform styles back in the day.

“IT’S NOT HISTORICALLY SIGNIFICANT THINGS, NECESSARILY. IT’S FAN ITEMS.” — DOUG SHIVERS “There was a discussion one time speculating on old uniforms and the color combinations because most of the photos people have seen from those days are black and white.

I’ve got a football card of an OAMC player in color, so I posted it. A guy sent me an email out of the blue and said he had a jersey like that. I said, ‘Send me a picture. I’d love to see it. And if you ever think about getting rid of it, let me know.’

“He emailed me back and says, ‘Well, my wife thinks it’s time for me to start getting rid of some stuff.’ So I drove to Edmond and met this old football player for Oklahoma A&M named Bob Namken. He actually gave two jerseys to me. I passed one on to a buddy who’s also into OSU memorabilia.”

Shivers kept a black jersey bearing No. 85 in white with orange and white stripes on the sleeve.

“There’s a picture in the 1950 Redskin that shows Alex Loyd wearing number 85.

He was a receiver from Stigler, Oklahoma.

He still holds the record for most receptions in one game — 16 catches against Kansas, his senior year, 1949.

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“THE THING ABOUT THESE OLD PROGRAMS, YOU CAN SEE THAT IT KIND OF REFLECTS ON THE STATE OF THE ATHLETIC DEPARTMENT AT THAT TIME.” — DOUG SHIVERS “Mr. Namken told me the story of how he got the jersey. He graduated a few years after Loyd, and they gave him the jersey because they had them around and didn’t need them anymore. I think it has to be Loyd’s jersey because ’49 was the last season they wore that kind of jersey. He would’ve been the last guy wearing 85. I’m sure they used them several years in a row, and those probably became practice jerseys. They didn’t have players who shared numbers or multiple copies. You had one jersey back in those days.”

After recounting the story online, Shivers made contact with members of the Loyd family.

“Coincidentally, I know another fan who’s originally from Stigler. He put some friends together, and I got to meet Kathy (Loyd) Roberts, Alex’s daughter, one day at a football game. His granddaughter was there, too. I told them if I ever got rid of it, I’d give them first dibs. It really probably needs to be in OSU’s Heritage Hall. It’s pretty cool.”

Meeting former players and other die-hard fans is an enjoyable byproduct of his pastime, Shivers says.

“A guy was building one of those cornhole games and put the call out online for some vintage OSU logos. I showed him several that I had for reference. In return, he gave me a couple pennants, the 1976 Tangerine Bowl. I went to his tailgate to pick them up, and his mom said, ‘I earned that pennant. I was in the band!’ That’s the fun part, just talking to people and meeting other Cowboy fans.”

Shivers has even used YouTube to share video clips from memorable moments in OSU sports lore.

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“Phillips 66 has been a long time sponsor of Big Eight, and now Big 12, basketball.

When the Big 12 formed, they made this video tape about Big Eight hoops. There’s a segment called Buzzer Beaters. The first one they show is Big Country throwing that ball in against Missouri. And then at the end of it is Eddie Hannon from the 1980-81 season. The game tape starts with the Louisville guy missing a free throw. It bounces out, Hannon grabs the rebound, dribbles up to half court, leaps and launches it in to beat Louisville, the defending national champs. I was at that game! I thought, I need to put this on YouTube …

“A few years later, I got an email from Eddie Hannon’s niece. He was getting ready to turn 50, and they were going to have a big party and wanted to show that highlight. I gladly sent it to them. I got the nicest letter from her mom, Eddie’s sister.”

After Oklahoma A&M was retroactively awarded the 1945 national championship by the American Football Coaches Association last year, Shivers heard from a relative of a player on that team.

“I got an email from a lady whose grandpa was on that undefeated team,” he says. “I didn’t find game action shots of him, but I found one shot in the yearbook where he and a bunch of other players were kind of lounging around on photo day, waiting their turn. I sent her that and a couple of the team pictures. She was going to give them to her grandpa for Christmas.

“At times you feel bad because someone will say their dad, uncle, grandpa, whoever, played at OSU or Oklahoma A&M, and they don’t have any pictures from back then. Not everybody is a starter or a prominent player and with my resources, I can’t always find a photo of the guy … but it’s very rewarding when you do.”

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Ride ’Em Cowboys Shivers says a few of his mementos stand out as personal favorites.

“There’s an old ‘COW BOYS’ bobblehead doll from the ’60s over there. Cindi and I were in an antique store, not very long after we moved back to Oklahoma. That doll was on sale for like $75, which wasn’t that much for what those things actually go for on the market these days. Anyway, she’s like, ‘A re you gonna get it?’ … I’m thinking it’s close to Christmas, and I didn’t want to spend 75 bucks on myself, I’ll just let it ride. So we left the store. Within the next day or two, Cindi went back over there, got the thing and hid it from me. She found a base, painted it black and gave it to me for Christmas. I like that because she went back and got it for me. She knew I liked it.

“I just think it’s cool. It’s OSU, and it’s unique with the way it says ‘COW’ and ‘BOYS’ on it.

That bobblehead doll might sell for 300 bucks, but it’s mostly just sentimental value to me.”

If there’s a Holy Grail of Cowboy collectibles that Shivers seeks, he says it’s probably a 1945 Cotton Bowl pennant.

“I know those are out there, but they’re hard to get. I also tried to buy — and failed — a pennant from the 1988 Holiday Bowl.

It’s the only one I’ve ever seen.

“I think another cool thing to have would be one of the old, three-foot-long cheerleader megaphones,” he adds. “They had some really neat ones in the mid-40s, with ‘Aggies’ on them and a picture of the bucking horse. You can see pictures in some of the old yearbooks.

I don’t know what happens to those things, if they got painted over, if they stayed at the school …”

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State of O-State Looking at the big picture, Shivers believes the publications he collects tell a broader story than just chronicling the current squad at the time.

“The thing about these old programs, you can see that it kind of reflects on the state of the athletic department at that time. In the ’60s, the football programs are skinny. OSU was winning 2-3 football games a year. Only had four home games some years. In the ’80s, the programs are thick, and they had these inserts with general interest articles about college football, tailgating recipes and stuff like that. The programs we have today are just awesome. My only problem with the ones we’ve had the last few years is they’re only making one or two a season as a yearbook kind of thing.”

Shivers keeps an eye out for memorabilia on eBay, along with the occasional garage sale or visit to a local antique shop.

“The first thing I ever bought on eBay was a black Oklahoma State license plate from the ’70s. It’s old and beat up a little bit, but it didn’t cost very much. After that, I thought I might be able to pick up other things on eBay … well, just look around.”

Sam the dog yawns and goes back to sleep.

Shivers smiles contentedly and gestures toward his treasures.

“All this stuff reminds me of things I’ve seen, experienced,” he says. “Some people don’t like to dwell in the past, but I don’t think of this as dwelling. I think it’s just remembering the good times.”

Rails of Fate The oldest item in Shivers’ collection is a postcard from 1908. Featuring an orange and black “OAMC” felt pennant affixed to the card and the school’s rally cry – “BOOMER RAH! BOOMER RAH! KI YI! KI YE! RIP ZIP HURRAH! YELL A. M. C. O. K. L. A. !!!” – the postcard is a coveted memento of a bygone era.

But what makes it even more special is the story told on the back.

Addressed to Earl Dragoo, the card arrived in Muncie, Indiana, on May 27, 1908, just four days after being postmarked in Stillwater – a testament to the U.S. Postal Service at the time.

Shivers transcribed the faint cursive correspondence, written in pencil nearly 110 years ago:

Dear Earl, Sat morn.

I received your card this morn. Yesterday was the E. Intercollegiate

“Their track meet was held at Central State Normal School in Edmond (now the University of Central Oklahoma),” Shivers says. “Oklahoma A&M sent athletes and student supporters to the track meet by train. Somehow, that train and another train collided head-on. I am amazed that I found a fan item from 1908 that actually had a story on it about an athletic event from 1908. Has to be really long odds of that happening.

“That is a pretty incredible story by itself, but I wanted to know more. I figured that, surely, if there were a train wreck in which a conductor was killed, there would be a newspaper account. I found one in the archives of the The Oklahoman dated May 22 with the colorful headline: DEATH LEERS AT STUDENTS AS TRAINS SMASH HEADON.” The same issue of the The Daily Oklahoman also included a brief recap of the track meet, Shivers adds.

Meet of Okla at Okla City. Our train left yesterday morn but ran into another train: had a wreck, killed the conductor and shook our boys up pretty badly. They had to lay over at Ripley, 15 mi. south until one o’clock, didn’t get to Okla City till 3 oklock [sic]. Started in and won all but mile. Rain hindered the rest of events. At the time they quit they were 8 pts ahead of Edmond, the principle rival. (over) Now Edmond won’t finish or won’t have a duel meet. I'll let you know what happens.

Carl H. Come to our place if you come to Okla.

“The star for OAMC that day was none other than E. C. Gallagher – Edward Gallagher, the man who became the wrestling coach at Oklahoma A&M, shaped the sport of wrestling, and for whom Gallagher-Iba Arena is named … That would’ve changed the future of OSU athletics if he would’ve been killed or injured in that train wreck.”

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An Untold Story Documentary to portray ups and downs of Eddie Sutton’s life

BY H O L LY B E R G B O W E R

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“We believe we’ll be telling an athletic history story that is second to none.”

— Christopher Hunt 1577 Productions Director

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C

hristopher Hunt is an awardwinning Native American director and editor specializing in documentary and multimedia production. He is also an Oklahoma State University alumnus who majored in journalism with an emphasis in video production. His focus for the last five years has been documentaries.

Hunt and his wife, Jessica, live in Oklahoma City with their two sons, Sullivan and Sawyer. His work has appeared on PBS, VEVO, various local and regional networks, as well as the deadCENTER Film Festival, the Hot Springs Documentary Film Festival and the NYC Food Film Festival.

He’s created original documentaries and short films, undertaking issues such as homelessness, sustainable energy and local art culture. Hunt’s trademark style offers an entertaining viewpoint aimed at complex issues.

Indoctrinated early on into OSU basketball, Hunt was introduced at a great time to be a fan. He attended wrestling and basketball games from birth through his college years. From 1996 to 2000, Hunt was a student and enjoyed some of the golden years of Cowboy basketball.

At the helm of many of his favorite college memories was head basketball coach Eddie Sutton.

Hunt and his partner David Tester are always looking for a project with national appeal — something that resonates with audiences everywhere. As most creative people know, great ideas strike when you least expect them.

“In the middle of the night, I thought, why not produce a documentary on Eddie Sutton,” Hunt says. “And then I thought, is that good? Will people like it? I didn’t even mention it to my family for three days because I didn’t know if the idea was crazy or not.”

As it turns out, his family and colleagues liked the idea.

No doubt, Sutton is a fan favorite. His name is emblazoned upon the GallagherIba Arena original maple wood floor.

Eddie Sutton Court is where the action happens today and for years to come.

His coaching tree demands the respect of any basketball fan. Sutton played for the legendary Coach Henry Iba and went on to mentor many future head coaches including: Bob Cleeland, James Dickey, Jimmy Dykes, Leonard Hamilton, Gene Keady, Bill Self and Bob Gottlieb.

Sutton coached at Southern Idaho, Creighton, Arkansas, Kentucky and Oklahoma State. While beloved by Cowboy fans and past players, Sutton is unquestionably a complex figure. Now in

his 80s, there’s never been a better time to look back on Sutton’s life, including the ups and downs, and tell the story of a coach who has lived several lifetimes in one.

Without the consent of Eddie Sutton himself, the film would be nothing but an interesting idea. Hunt reached out to alumni and got in touch with Eddie and his son, Steve. They both agreed to move forward with the project.

The film crew completed interviews with the Sutton family including, from left, producer Wendy Garrett, coach Eddie Sutton, director Christopher Hunt, Sutton’s grandson Hunter Sutton and producer David Tester.

The documentary creators conducted interviews with former Sutton protégés including, from left, producer David Tester, director Christopher Hunt, Memphis Grizzlies guard Tony Allen and producer Wendy Garrett.

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Director Christopher Hunt interviews Larry Reece on the floor of historic Gallagher-Iba Arena.

Tester and Hunt’s company, 1577 Productions, specializes in quality films that explore humanity. No matter the topic, the films cost money to make. Near the end of 2016, fundraising began.

“We really relied on people who are passionate about Coach,” Hunt says. “The money we raised is a 100 percent tax donation. We’re not making money on this film; we’re passionate about this project.”

Hundreds of hours of research began in earnest several years ago. The push to #PutEddieIn the College Basketball Hall of Fame helped the filmmakers’ cause.

Many Sutton fans believe it’s a travesty that the coach has not been inducted.

Sutton is the only coach with more than 800 wins not in the hall.

“I’ve found that people are willing to talk, and the subject of the hall of fame coming back up didn’t hurt,” Hunt says.

“It wasn’t my mission to get Coach into the hall of fame, but if it helps in any way, I’d be ecstatic.”

Former player Doug Gottlieb’s open letter to the hall of fame reopened discussion on Sutton once again. Still, the Eddie Sutton story is not an easy one. There are

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quotes he cannot live down and actions that have defined him in some negative ways, but behind all that is a man who has mentored hundreds if not thousands of young men, resurrected programs from nothing and united fans to a point that even today they chant his name.

Sutton began his career at the College of Southern Idaho — a school that didn’t even have a basketball program or a gym. By the time he left to go to Creighton University, Southern Idaho had both. From Creighton, Sutton went to Arkansas, a school focused on football in the old Southwestern Conference. He promised a trip to the Final Four to his first freshman class, and by their senior year, they were there.

After 13 years as Arkansas’ head coach, which included numerous tournament trips, Sutton received the call to Kentucky. Along with the offer came Sutton’s famous quote of his willingness “to crawl to Kentucky.” Although his time in Kentucky ended in disgrace with the pay to play scandal (of which he was later cleared), it opened a door to Oklahoma State.

The once-vibrant OSU basketball program, the stuff of Iba legend, had fallen into disrepair. That changed in 1990 when Coach Sutton returned to his alma mater. The rowdiest arena in the nation was reborn, and a new legion of Cowboy faithful basked in the ear-shattering rumble of the crowd. That crowd, of course, included filmmaker Hunt.

“The Sutton story will include his upbringing, playing for Iba, all his coaching and more,” Hunt says. “We will dive into the battles with alcohol as well, in the hopes that it will help someone fighting the same battle.”

Filming of the Eddie Sutton documentary continues throughout the summer, and fundraising efforts are ongoing. Larry Reece, Sidney Moncrief, Tony Allen and Berry Tramel will be contributing to the story. The filmmakers believe it will include 35-40 interviews and set a release goal of early 2018. They plan to pitch the film to ESPN and other networks.

“We believe we’ll be telling an athletic history story that is second to none,” Hunt says. “It’s a story that no one has really told so far.”

TAILGATE V

partnered with

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V

W h a t e v e r i s h a p p e n i n g i n y o u r li f e ,

there’s a good chance your college

experience helped you get to where you are today. When you reflect on that time, you may recall many fond memories — meeting your spouse, celebrating a big football win, an all-nighter to study or laughing with people who became your lifelong friends. Today’s Oklahoma State University students are having similar experiences as they pursue bright orange futures. Visit OSUgiving.com to learn how you can be a part of their journey.

Dear Cowboy Family, “Wellness” and “health” are often used interchangeably — but aren’t the entire picture. Wellness encompasses all aspects of a person. Physical, nutritional, spiritual, emotional — all affect how we view the world and our place in it.

At Oklahoma State University, we are honored to be designated as America’s Healthiest Campus®. Some of the ways we continue to earn our title: •

A variety of group exercise classes are offered at the Colvin Recreation Center and the Student Union each week.

• Intramurals are open to students, faculty and staff.

• Outdoor Adventure promotes trips to encourage the campus population to get outside and explore.

• Many outdoor features such as the Cowboy Walking Trail, the labyrinth and Orange Grove promote healthy living on campus.

• Nutritional counseling and healthy cooking demonstrations are available.

• Healthy eating options are labeled Choose Orange in University Dining Services facilities.

One of my very favorite programs is tucked away on the third floor of the Student Union. Focusing on emotional health, University Counseling Services has created the Reboot Center, an area designed to calm your body and mind.

It’s a place to relax, renew and rejuvenate when a little calm is needed.

The sound of running water, soft lighting and a spa-like atmosphere combine to ease one’s mind when entering the Reboot Center. Conveniently located next to University Counseling Services, it is an oasis in the middle of a bustling Student Union.

I love many things about the free services at the Reboot Center, but perhaps my favorite is simply the concept. The staff uses stress management technology

Amanda Slife, left, and Ashley Walters relax in the Reboot Center with Evie, a Pete’s Pet Posse therapy dog. to teach students (and faculty and staff!) how to unwind and relax. Computer games and exercises are played, controlled by breathing and heart rate. Through this technology, students identify signs of stress and apply breathing techniques to de-stress throughout the day. This concept is easily applied to exams, job interviews or simply dealing with life in general.

The Reboot Center also understands emotional health has many facets. For example, there’s the power of Pete’s Pet Posse. Each Thursday at noon, teams of dogs in the Reboot Center calm and console students. Many times, students are waiting for the dogs to arrive.

I am so proud of OSU for continuing to seek creative and innovative ways to make a difference in the lives of students, faculty and staff.

If you have not visited the Reboot Center, I encourage you to run by 320W Student Union. Tell them the First Cowgirl sent ya!

Wellness: It’s More Than Fitness Reboot Center 320 W Student Union Website: ucs.okstate.edu/reboot @osureboot @OSUreboot @okstate.reboot.center

In Health,

Ann Hargis OSU First Cowgirl

OSU First Cowgirl Ann Hargis and Scruff

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Meandering Path PHOTO / PHIL SHOCKLEY

Dave Brown Landscape Coordinator

Labyrinths benefit mental and physical health

T

BY A D R I A N N A C U N N I N G H A M

he Cowboy family has a new way to relieve the stress of work and classes — walking the labyrinths. Oklahoma State University has created two labyrinths, on the main campus between Morrill Hall and Bartlett Center and another in The Botanic Garden at OSU. A labyrinth is a meandering path with a purpose for meditation, reflection and movement. Many people mistake labyrinths for mazes, but they are quite the opposite. A maze attempts to confuse

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participants by including dead ends while a labyrinth is meant to relax and will only have one way out.

The campus labyrinth includes 12 benches numbered with roman numerals where anyone can meditate, relax or even study in peace.

Dave Brown, facilities management landscape coordinator, helped design the labyrinths. An important aspect of the campus labyrinth design is the use of sacred geometry.

“The design of the labyrinth was created by playing with the math and patterns of [Italian mathematician] Fibonacci,” Brown says. “The final layout that was chosen was one of the more simple patterns that would fit into the space and allow a wider path to accommodate wheelchairs, strollers and walkers more easily.”

Fibonacci’s math has been referred to as the golden ratio. This is found repeatedly in patterns and forms throughout nature. Brown loved the connection of these two aspects, which served as inspiration for his landscape designs.

The three-sided shape of the labyrinth represents mind, body and spirit, a reminder that health is not limited to diet and exercise, but is much broader since all areas of health are interconnected.

Brown worked with Lou Anella, director of The Botanic Garden at OSU, to design the labyrinth in the garden. The two labyrinths are very different, but they serve the same purpose.

“The labyrinth design is a classical nine-circuit labyrinth,” Brown says. “Dr. Anella and his staff chose the site, and I assisted in choosing the labyrinth and

PHOTO / PHIL SHOCKLEY

Walking a labyrinth can alleviate anxiety and stress to promote a happy and healthy lifestyle. drawing it into the space in AutoCAD.” Unlike the labyrinth between Morrill Hall and the Bartlett Center, the labyrinth at the garden does not have pavement or seating, keeping it in a more nature-based setting.

“Ours is very, very simple,” Anella says. “The labyrinth is mowed into a field, so the path is just mowed and the rest we just let grow. It’s all Bermuda grass, so it won’t get higher than about a foot.”

Labyrinths serve many purposes.

While they are a great way to get outside and be active, labyrinths also have other physical and mental health benefits, serving as relaxation tools.

“By the nature of being an academic environment, we encounter stress and anxiety through deadlines, tests, research or any number of things,” Brown says.

“The labyrinth is OSU’s show of care and support to our community to provide a place for meditation, relaxation or even just a peaceful place to study.”

The new labyrinths help OSU foster America’s Healthiest Campus® initiatives.

University Chief Wellness Officer Todd Misener believes the benefits are countless.

“Walking the labyrinth can help you relax or wind down in the middle or at the end of a stressful day,” Misener says.

“Intentionally taking a short five- to 10-minute break from your day to walk a labyrinth can help you re-center yourself, lower your blood pressure and refocus on your day.”

While there are many health benefits to walking a labyrinth, Misener advises that the practice should be intentional.

Walking a labyrinth without a goal of a positive, relaxing experience may not be helpful.

“Walking a labyrinth is as much about the journey as it is about the destination,” Misener says. “It is a tool that can help you focus on how you are feeling — to cue you into how your body is feeling as a way to relax and reduce stress if that is your intention going into it.”

The labyrinths also provide psychological benefits, says Cindy Washington, clinical counselor at the Student Counseling Center.

“The presence of a labyrinth in a community space lets it be known that being calm, peaceful and relaxed is important,” Washington says. “It is a reminder to focus on self and to take time to care for your mind and body. The OSU labyrinths make a clear statement that the university values the health and wellness of its students, staff and faculty as well as those who visit campus.”

The labyrinth experience differs user to user. Some people reported an increased sense of well-being or an epiphany they had been waiting to surface, while others have used the turns and changes in the curves of the labyrinth to regain balance lost due to poor health. However, most people simply use the calm environment for thought and reflection. One of the most common experiences among people when regularly walking a labyrinth is more clear and insightful thoughts about different challenges in their lives.

As a landscape designer, Brown’s hope is to provide a space that will encourage people to spend time outdoors and interact with nature. He believes the labyrinth will do just that for the OSU community.

“There are numerous studies on the beneficial effects that both meditation and nature have on our mental health, and the outdoor labyrinth is a space that offers both,” Brown says.

Watch videos about the labyrinths on OState.TV at okla.st/Campus_Labyrinth and okla.st/Botanic_Garden_Labyrinth.

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Gives $1.25 Million to Support OSU’s New ENDEAVOR Lab

BY JAC O B LO N G A N

O

klahoma State University’s new ENDEAVOR undergraduate laboratory facility for the College of Engineering, Architecture and Technology will feature two prominent enhancements thanks to the generosity of Valero Energy Corporation.

The San Antonio-based Fortune 50 company has donated $1.25 million to OSU to support the building’s Process and Transport Laboratory as well as the Pre-Laboratory Instruction Room.

“We are proud to partner with Valero in the new ENDEAVOR lab,” says Dean Paul Tikalsky of the college.

“We share the collective values in engineering with safety, environment and community at the top of the list. The

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extraordinary support, which Valero has offered OSU to educate the next generation, shows its commitment to the interdisciplinary education in the most advanced areas of energy. The ENDEAVOR is a new type of building that is laboratory, entrepreneurial development and hands-on collaboration all in one.

“It is an innovative hub of learning that shifts the college’s pedagogy from traditional engineering education to a robust combination of theory and systems education with hands-on applications to better prepare the next generation of engineers, architects and technology professionals. Our partners in industry, and especially Valero, are helping us build an inspirational tool that engages the next generation of OSU students and faculty to meet the

intellectual capital needs of business and industry throughout the state, region and nation.”

The Valero Process and Transport Laboratory will provide students with firsthand learning experiences by affording them access to state-of-the-art equipment and processes similar to what is used at modern refineries. It will allow 15 active experiments to run simultaneously and include a high bay space for distillations, separations and absorption processes to assist in engineering studies. The Valero Pre-Laboratory Instruction classroom will provide advanced teaching technology to prepare students for lab experiences.

“Valero’s investment in the new ENDEAVOR lab is an incredible way to support the next generation of engineers,” says Lane Riggs, Valero executive vice president of refining operations and engineering. “This unique learning lab will provide current and future students an opportunity to immerse themselves in an environment similar to Valero refinery operations. The hands-on experience is invaluable, and we are proud to be a part of it.”

Valero, an independent petroleum refiner and ethanol producer, employs approximately 10,000 people. It markets

products in 44 states, six Canadian provinces, the United Kingdom and Ireland.

The 72,000-square-foot ENDEAVOR facility will include state-of-the-art design that is reconfigurable so that it meets future educational needs. The structure is designed to be used as a teaching tool for architecture and energy utilization. It will support an estimated 84 courses with approximately 118 laboratory sections.

Valero’s gift is a significant step toward completing the $35 million ENDEAVOR building, which will support the college’s changing pedagogy, while adding value and quality to the degrees earned at OSU. ENDEAVOR will support students’ entrepreneurial ideas with large maker spaces and develop tomorrow’s innovative leaders. This facility

will greatly increase the space for multidisciplinary laboratory activities and give OSU students an experience beyond those at peer institutions.

ENDEAVOR will help OSU address Oklahoma’s shortage of engineers and technology professionals, who play a vital role in the state’s growing economy. Engineering enrollment at OSU has doubled in the past decade, creating a critical need for modern laboratories that address the challenges of tomorrow and drive economic development in Oklahoma.

The facility will enhance academic outcomes through hands-on education, interdisciplinary and collaborative problem-solving and entrepreneurial innovation. Its goals were established by collaboration between industry leaders, faculty and students. These include creating a flagship facility for undergraduate programs; encouraging interaction and cross-pollination among all constituents; creating topic-specific laboratories; exhibiting and utilizing building systems as instructional tools, including an exposed steel structure, meters displaying energy and water usage; and color coding and labeling of utility systems.

The building will include areas designed to facilitate specific undergraduate project-based learning. The chemical and environmental labs will be state-of-theart facilities that support scaled-unit plant operations, allowing students to understand the design parameters of processing chemicals and industrial materials into usable products. The flow and thermodynamic lab will support experimentation of advanced fluid and heat transfer systems. ENDEAVOR will have mechanical and physical properties testing labs to allow students to characterize materials by physically testing the engineering properties. The electronics and communications labs will be a hands-on environment that allows students to put theory to practice and develop innovative devices that measure, evaluate and control electrical systems. Finally, ENDEAVOR will support a large Venture lab that will provide additive manufacturing (3D printing), automated machine manufacturing, robotic control and coding for control systems.

The building will house 14 undergraduate research laboratories throughout its three floors along with a lecture hall and student-project space. It will be at the corner of Hester Street and Athletic Avenue, bridging architecture, engineering, entrepreneurship and industry interactions.

For more information, visit CEAT.okstate.edu.

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BRIDGING THE GREAT CULTURAL DIVIDE

… one conversation at a time

BY E L I Z A B E T H K E YS

“One of these mornings, you’re gonna rise up singing And you’ll spread your wings and you’ll take to the sky …”

T

he lyrics from the Gershwin tune “Summertime” are a metaphor for Miss Oklahoma Triana BrowneHearrell’s next steps. The song struck a chord for the Oklahoma State University alumna, propelling her to capture the overall talent preliminary contest and the state crown in the qualifier for the Miss America competition. With no formal vocal training, Triana says she learned to sing by listening to her mother, Dr. Monica Browne.

PHOTO / PHIL SHOCKLEY

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PHOTOS / LEIGH THOMPSON

Dr. Monica Browne and Joel Hearrell congratulate their daughter Triana Browne-Hearrell at the Miss Oklahoma competition in Tulsa. All three are OSU alumni.

“My mom is always singing. Every morning I’d wake up and she would sing around the house, so it just comes naturally for me,” she says.

Triana is working with a vocal coach this summer to prepare for the Miss America pageant in September. Training also comes naturally for her as she trades her athletic shoes in for stilettos for another form of competition.

“I’ve competed in track and field all my life,” she says.

During her senior season on the Cowgirls track team, Triana listened to her coach and tried a new event, entering the heptathlon — seven tests of speed, strength and agility in 100-meter hurdles, high jump, shot put, 200-meters dash, long jump, javelin throw and 800-meter run.

“Coach (Diego Flaquer) always told me, ‘Don’t be afraid to step into the unknown,’” Triana says.

Triana is an unknown in the pageant world. Many women work for years competing to earn beauty titles. For her, it was a way to pay some bills.

“The scholarship money awarded is what got my attention,” she says.

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Triana won the Miss OSU title, a preliminary for the Miss Oklahoma competition in 2016.

“I didn’t place the first time at Miss Oklahoma but, I had so much fun, I decided to come back and try to make the finals,” Triana says. “I entered and won the Miss Oklahoma City competition to qualify for this year’s Miss Oklahoma.”

Winning the 2017 Miss Oklahoma title has given her the opportunity to spread a message important to her.

“I’m talking about bridging the great cultural divide starting with just one conversation at a time,” Triana says. “It’s OK to disagree — let’s just talk about it with respect for each person.”

As a multicultural woman, she has often faced personal challenges.

“Sometimes as a kid I was in a very dark place — I was very alone not knowing where I fit in. I was too black for the whites and too white for the black kids,” Triana says. “I don’t want any child to feel like they don’t have a place in this world.”

She hopes to nurture cultural compassion and change the narrative from “they” to “we.”

“It’s really about sitting down and just having a conversation with people who may have different beliefs, ideas or opinions so we can all come together as one.”

Part of embracing her own heritage is learning more about her Chickasaw ancestors.

“Triana is a great ambassador for the Chickasaw Nation because she is committed to learning more about Chickasaw culture and sharing the important role our culture plays in her life,” says Chickasaw Nation Governor Bill Anoatubby. “She is a dynamic Chickasaw woman whose strong work ethic, caring attitude and perseverance make her a positive role model.”

The Chickasaw Nation is helping Triana design her apparel for the Parade of States during the Miss America contestants’ grand entrance. Her father, Joel Hearrell of Houston, says his grandmother, Sadie Hearrell, and parents, Charles and Judith Hearrell of Bennington, Oklahoma, are close to tribal events. Joel met Triana’s mom when they both were on the OSU track team. Monica was a sprinter, and he was a long distance runner.

Triana Browne-Hearrell was a student-athlete at OSU, placing ninth in the heptathlon at the Big 12 Track and Field Championships in 2016.

Coming to OSU to study was an easy decision for Triana. She attended the Child Development Lab on campus as a young child while her mother was an OSU student.

“She has been fortunate to have so many great people in her life,” her mom says. “Fortunately, she had Coach Diego and teammates who supported her during college. It helps when you have tenacious people around you to encourage you to keep going. Even when a doctor kept telling her to let go of track because she was suffering so many injuries, she never gave up. Instead, she became a heptathlete and placed ninth in the Big 12 track and field championships after only three months of training. That’s what champions do — they push through the fear, the tears, the injuries and the disappointments because they have high expectations for themselves.

“I know Triana appreciates people who supported her along the way. She is the first woman with African descent to win Miss OSU. We have been blessed to be part of the journey.”

Monica praises all the Miss Oklahoma sponsors, too.

“You are talking about an organization that has helped a lot of young women become top finalists and runners-ups, with six women from Oklahoma winning the Miss America crown,” Monica says.

Triana’s preliminary goal is to make the Miss America finals to sing on national television. And, if she goes farther, she will take it one event at a time – just like the heptathlon. No matter what the outcome, dad Joel says, “She’ll always be Miss America to me.”

She says she loves challenging herself.

Everyday she meets an array of new individuals so she is striving to positively influence their lives during her time as Miss Oklahoma. Triana is accustomed to a fastpaced schedule.

The Tulsa native was named to the Academic All-Big 12 team and the Dean’s Honor Roll on her way to earning a bachelor’s degree in human development and family sciences with a minor in sociology at OSU. “Triana always devoted a lot of time to her schoolwork,” says Emily Middlebrook of the OSU Academic Center for Student-Athletes. “With a full class load, student-athletes attend many hours of meetings, practices, travel and competition. Triana handled all that with grace.

She put in hours and always had a smile on her face. I knew she had the qualities that the judges would be looking for to represent Oklahoma.”

PHOTO / CLAY BILLMAN

“It was great living in Stillwater,” Joel Hearrell says. “The town has really grown since I was a student.”

He says it was fun to share his love for OSU with his daughter. He attended his first beauty pageant when Triana won Miss Oklahoma.

“I didn’t know how much work went into it. We were told you are more likely to get drafted into the NFL than to win Miss Oklahoma,” he says. “Those girls work so hard.”

Triana’s mother agrees.

“Pageants are not like track,” Monica says. “In track, you pretty much know who is the winner and, if you are unsure, you have a computer that will provide you pictures and times as evidence of who won a race. In pageants, you never know how the judges are scoring them or how well a contestant has done in their private interview. People have no idea how hard many of these young women are working … but champions make a decision to keep going and progressing.”

Serving as Miss Oklahoma has Triana in a whirlwind. As she prepares for the Miss America competition, she is continuing her work with the Boys and Girls Clubs of Tulsa and Oklahoma City, where she teaches Chickasaw heritage. She shares the story of the Oklahoma rose rock and invites everyone to say “chokma” when they greet others.

Although her life as Miss Oklahoma is very different from her days as a collegiate student-athlete, Triana doesn’t forget her lifelong focus on sports and she continues to support healthy lifestyles, partnering in activities with the American Heart Association. It’s a group she feels especially connected to since she struggled with a rare heart condition at birth.

After 17 days in a neonatal intensive care unit, she recovered, which developed her family’s belief, “I’m here to do things for a reason.”

Watch Miss America Tune in for the live broadcast on ABC at 8 p.m. CST September 10.

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NATIONAL SCHOLARS

Adding dimension to the college experience

BY J I M M I T C H E L L

Students at Oklahoma State University claimed some big wins this year in national award programs, earning prized fellowships and scholarships.

FULBRIGHT SCHOLARS Five OSU students are recipients of Fulbright U.S. Student Program grants for 2017, which will fund their journeys to foreign countries to conduct research or to teach while learning about the people and culture of another country.

Christina Anaya In addition to the Fulbright award, Christina Anaya, a doctoral student at OSU from Fallbrook, California, will also receive funding from the National Science Foundation to study parasites in Iceland and help establish a baseline for gauging shifts in their populations. The scientific community is seeking this data to determine whether such shifts could negatively influence ecosystem health and impact people, too.

“I plan to use snails to gauge the number of parasites that live in an area since many parasites use snails as a host,” Anaya says.

Jaryd Hinch Jaryd Hinch, a geography major from Ponca City, Oklahoma, chose Estonia as his Fulbright destination because its people have managed to create a society where nature and technology have a unique relationship.

“The duality of their culture is astounding. They’re deeply connected with their traditional roots in nature while being the world’s most digital and technologically-advanced country,” Hinch says.

“I expect to share what I’ve learned about this synergy of technology and nature in hopes of bringing these concepts together in my own society.”

Candace Square A graduate student at OSU, Candace Square of Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, will travel to Israel to help students improve their English. She’ll be teaching at a college in Tel Aviv and is excited to be headed to a place she’s been inspired to visit from her youth.

“I grew up going to an event at my church called A Night to Honor Israel.

The first time I attended, it sparked my curiosity, which grew into a fascination for Israeli culture and history,” Square says. “There’s no better way to learn more about the culture than to be immersed in the country.”

Sydney Stewart Sydney Stewart, an animal science major at OSU from Red Oak, Texas, will evaluate health and biosecurity measures used on commercial swine farms in Germany’s rural northwest, where producers use antibiotic-free disease control and prevention systems. She will join a team of researchers from the Institute of Animal Sciences in Bonn.

“By studying and identifying the strengths and weaknesses of each system, we may be able to develop viable, costeffective, practical models for implementation on U.S. farms,” she says.

PHOTO / GARY LAWSON

Colton Flynn A doctoral student at OSU from Farmington, Arkansas, Colton Flynn will conduct research in Ethiopia on the development of remote sensing techniques to predict the nutrient levels of grains and grasses. He will be working with researchers at the Ethiopian Biodiversity Institute.

“I’ve always wanted to help others and what better way than by battling hunger and malnutrition in Ethiopia, a country currently struggling with these issues,” Flynn says. “The crop I’m studying is a staple in the Ethiopian diet, and I plan to use remote sensing methods to quickly identify iron, calcium and protein levels in the crop during its growing periods, so action can be taken to increase these levels.”

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OSU congratulated five Fulbright Scholars, from left, Colton Flynn, Christina Anaya, Jaryd Hinch, President Burns Hargis, Candace Square, Sydney Stewart and Steve Hallgren, Fulbright program adviser.

NSF FELLOWSHIPS The National Science Foundation awarded three Oklahoma State University students Graduate Research Fellowships in a program that drew 13,000 applications this year. The recipients receive a $34,000 annual stipend for three years, which can be used over a five-year period. Scott Goeppner, from Bridgewater, Massachusetts, was recognized with an honorable mention for his integrative biology doctoral research at OSU.

Christian Ley Christian Ley, from Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, received an NSF fellowship with her first proposal, a rare achievement for undergraduates. She graduated from OSU with a bachelor’s degree in biosystems and agricultural engineering and is entering an environmental science doctoral program at Purdue University. Ley will examine the safety of municipal water systems and work to develop bio-sensors for water-borne pathogens.

Ann Money The curator of education and research at the Oklahoma Aquarium in Jenks, Ann Money returned to school to earn a doctorate in integrative biology at OSU, where she is researching the health of coral systems. The NSF Fellowship will assist in her goal to develop possible explanations for the hardiness and survival of certain coral species affected by worldwide coral bleaching. She is from Alexandria, Virginia.

Ashley Rankin After earning a bachelor’s degree in psychology from North Texas University, Ashley Rankin, from Belton, Texas, joined the OSU doctoral psychology program and will use the NSF Fellowship in researching the psycho-biology of close friendships and how hormone levels affect friendship quality.

UDALL SCHOLAR The Udall Foundation annually awards scholarships of up to $7,000 each, to 50-60 college sophomores and juniors nationally. Lindsey Hancock was recognized with an honorable mention.

A sophomore from Norman, Oklahoma, Hancock is a physiology major in the OSU Honors College who has conducted research as a freshman research scholar and with the American Indian Diabetes Prevention Center.

Emma Kincade Udall Scholar Emma Kincade was recognized for her student leadership and health-related accomplishments, which include collaboration with medical students and faculty at OSU Center for Health Sciences in evaluating a new therapy to help diabetics. She’s committed to advancing culturally sensitive occupational therapy in the Cherokee Nation.

She is OSU’s 16th Udall Scholar and the third straight to earn the honor in native health care and tribal policy.

Kincade, a junior from Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, is majoring in communication sciences and disorders at OSU, with plans to pursue a dual master’s degree in occupational therapy and public health at Washington University in St. Louis.

GOLDWATER SCHOLAR A total of 240 sophomores and juniors were selected for Goldwater Scholarships this year. Each will receive a one- or two-year scholarship, which covers tuition, fees, books, room and board up to a maximum of $7,500 per year. OSU students Alicia Aguilar, a junior from Edmond, Oklahoma, and William “Colby” Starr, a junior from Tulsa, Oklahoma, were awarded honorable mentions in the competition.

Nicholas Nelsen Goldwater Scholar Nicholas H. Nelsen, from Stillwater, Oklahoma, is an OSU Honors College junior in a triple degree program, which includes honors bachelor’s degree programs in mechanical engineering and mathematics and a bachelor’s degree program in aerospace engineering. His undergraduate research at OSU includes projects focusing on the fluid dynamics of blood flow in the heart and the mathematics of lung-like fractals.

“A multitude of strong programs and excellent faculty here at OSU have allowed me to thrive as I explore my diverse set of research interests in both engineering and mathematics,” Nelsen says.

Nelsen is the 20th student from OSU to be named a Goldwater Scholar.

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Qi Liu, left, Yicheng Liang and Maoyong Zheng, right, point the OSU “S” toward China and a bright future for the program’s students.

Working Together

I

PHOTO / TODD JOHNSON

First students graduate from OSU’s joint program with China Agricultural University

BY D O N A L D S T O T T S

t’s pomp and circumstance with a Far East twist and a Cowboy twang.

Participating in Oklahoma State University’s ceremonies on May 13, 2017, were 28 Chinese students who earned a bachelor’s degree from both OSU and China Agricultural University.

“These students are the first graduates of a CAU-OSU joint degree program approved in 2013, which includes two years of study at CAU and two years in the Department of Agricultural Economics at OSU,” says Mike Woods, department head.

The 2017 graduates began as freshmen at CAU in 2013 and came to OSU in 2015. An additional 32 students began at OSU in fall 2016. A third group of 35 is expected this fall.

CAU is considered China’s foremost university for agricultural studies with joint programs in 35 countries and territories.

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The CAU-OSU joint program began when OSU President Burns Hargis traveled to China in December 2011. The two universities signed an agreement in 2013.

Joe Schatzer, OSU professor of farm management and undergraduate coordinator for the Department of Agricultural Economics, was heavily involved with developing the coursework for the joint degree program. He traveled to China, sat in on their classes and worked with CAU staff on creating a syllabus.

OSU hired Arakssi Arshakian in January 2015 as the department’s international academic program coordinator.

Arshakian worked closely with faculty to create OSU’s part of the joint degree program.

“From the beginning, our focus was on the students and how we could help them have the richest possible academic, cultural and personal experience,” she says. “We use a three-level approach with a particular focus at each level, working

with the students before they arrive, while they are here, going through the program, and when they near graduation.”

Three steps Before students arrive, they become familiar with the department, the college and the university in general through a freshman orientation class at the CAU campus in Beijing.

The department sends weekly journals to the participating Chinese students to ease any culture shock and keep their excitement level up.

“Attending a major university can be a culture shock for any student anywhere,” Arshakian says.

She secures housing for the students while Schatzer helps them enroll and, like many OSU educators, provides a willing ear, sage advice and caring attitude.

“Warm-hearted professors,” student Echo Zhuo calls them, giving a special

PHOTO / TODD JOHNSON

Dr. Guanhua Huang, dean of International College Beijing, China Agricultural University, addresses the students at a graduation reception. shout-out to Brian Whitacre, agricultural economics professor and OSU Cooperative Extension Service rural development specialist. For Junhan “Jackie” Chen, it’s OSU professor of agricultural marketing Brian Adam.

“My major is agricultural business,” Chen says. “My grandparents used to run a corn-and-chicken farm that experienced hard times. I’ve long wanted to use my college education to see what I can do for the old farm.”

Chen especially appreciates the number of events Adam has arranged, exposing the students to American culture.

“Everyone learned a lot, and we improved our English as well,” Chen says.

“The world has become a global marketplace, and though a country’s specific policies may differ from one another, understanding other cultures is important to understanding why things work as they do and what opportunities may be there for you, your family and the region where you live.”

The program works seamlessly. When the students first arrive in Stillwater, they participate in a two-day departmental orientation as part of OSU’s Welcome Week, learning about classroom courtesies, academic integrity, cross-cultural differences and campus resources. The students are then paired with a peer mentor who helps guide them and answers questions.

The peer mentors meet with their assigned students for four hours weekly, write weekly reports about the meetings and meet with Arshakian at least once a week.

“There is an interview process for mentors, who take on significant responsibilities in terms of being there for their fellow students, which is why we also award scholarship stipends to them,” Schatzer says. “We feel strongly that the experience should provide value to them as well as those they mentor.”

Making dreams real The CAU-OSU connection is a twoway opportunity, with American OSU students living and studying for a semester or more at CAU in Beijing.

“Agribusiness student Hannah McReynolds spent her sophomore year at CAU studying with her CAU-OSU classmates, and Jackie Elliott is currently studying at CAU,” Woods says.

For Yicheng Liang, the joint degree program has literally been “a dream come true,” for his education, the people he has met and the memories he has made.

Liang believes his OSU experience has better prepared him for his next American adventure, attending graduate school at the University of California-Davis. But, he says, they will always be, “Forever Cowboys in our hearts.”

The first class of students from the CASNR/CAU partnership graduated in May.

PHOTO / TODD JOHNSON

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OSU alumnus Piyush Patel, Digital-Tutors founder

PHOTO / GARY LAWSON

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College of Education 2017 graduate Danielle Foster

A

Changing STUDENT’S LIFE

Commencement speaker pays off graduating student’s loans

BY C H R I S T Y L A N G

P

ut a stranger through college.”

The goal made it onto Piyush Patel’s bucket list 10 years ago. And during Oklahoma State University’s spring 2017 commencement, he crossed it off that list.

During his commencement address, Patel announced that he and his wife, Lisa, were paying off graduating science education senior Danielle Foster’s five-digit student loans.

“It was a real struggle for Lisa and I to put ourselves through college, and the loans were over our heads until we paid them off,” Patel says. “I’ve given enough bonuses to my employees when I had my company to pay off loans, and I could see the freedom in their eyes when they crawled out from the debt.”

When OSU President Burns Hargis asked him to give the commencement speech for the College of Education and College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources ceremony, Patel knew the time was right.

“All I could think about sharing was this idea of changing people’s lives through our actions,” he says.

Patel spoke about the impact his parents have had on his life. The family came to the United States from England in 1978 when Piyush was 4. Until recently, Ramesh and Nirmala Patel worked seven

days a week, running a motel in El Reno, Oklahoma. Piyush saw the manual labor, the getting up in the middle of the night, the sacrifices his parents made to put food on the table. They encouraged him to get an education.

TEACHERS CHANGING THE WORLD Piyush arrived at Oklahoma State University in 1994 as an electrical engineering major, but during his junior year, he realized his true calling was education.

“I owe who I am today to the teachers who said that one day I would change the world — that I’m valuable and needed.

There are a lot of teachers and administrators at OSU who said to me personally, ‘One day you are going to make a real difference.’ I had no idea what they saw in me, but I started to believe it.”

Patel graduated with a 1998 elementary education degree. He started his career as a science teacher at Stillwater Middle School, later moving to Northern Oklahoma College, where he began as an adjunct instructor and transitioned to a full-time position leading the digital media program. Through his years of teaching, Patel found no easy way to learn graphic design and complex software applications. In 2004, along with Lisa and a few friends, he started Digital-Tutors, an online training program providing affordable, on-demand tutorials for graphic

design and software programs for students and developing artists. Digital-Tutors became a pioneer in the industry, gaining more than 40 employees, teaching 1.5 million students and providing graphic design consultation for animation giants Pixar and DreamWorks.

“I’m a proud Education graduate,” Patel says. “I don’t think you go into education to be rich and famous. It’s been a passion of mine to be a teacher and to help others. I have been blessed tenfold by helping others.”

RISING OUT OF POVERTY Growing up in Stroud, Oklahoma, Danielle Foster did not have much. Her grandfather lived in Oklahoma during the Dust Bowl. Like many others, he left for California but later returned. Danielle says her family never really got out of poverty.

“There’s a much higher chance that I would not be doing anything as opposed to graduating from college,” Foster says.

Her grandmother, Treva Foster, had different plans for the granddaughter she was raising.

“She pushed me every day, helping me realize how important education is,” Danielle Foster says. “She really pushed me to do my best and celebrated successes with me. Thanks to her, I knew that going to college was what I was going to do.”

Danielle arrived at OSU in 2012, the

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BY C H R I S T Y L A N G

first person in her family to go to college.

Though she says part of her had always known she wanted to teach, she began as a pre-nursing major. She changed to English education, but that wasn’t quite right either. With an eye toward becoming a veterinarian, her adviser in the College of Education suggested she major in science education. This would prepare her for veterinary school and give her an option to teach science.

Foster began taking education classes as a junior and had her first opportunity to interact with students in science classes.

“I was hooked,” she says. “In my science education courses, I felt like I had finally found it.”

As part of the science education degree program, Foster attended the National Association of Biology Teachers Conference with Julie Angle, the Bill and Billie Buckles Innovation in Teaching Endowed Professor and a science education faculty member. She also had the opportunity to do research with OSU faculty members and was a teaching assistant for Biology 1113.

“Dr. Angle provided so many opportunities to grow and be involved in the

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“This experience made me realize you can make such a difference in someone’s life and it can be in a moment.” — Danielle Foster

science education community,” Foster says. “I’m so thankful. She is incredibly passionate and cares so much.”

As graduation approached, Foster was busy wrapping up her student teaching internship in Wellston, Oklahoma, but turned her focus to the next phase of life. She had lined up a position with Upward Bound to teach science during the summer. Next, she knew she would need to find a full-time teaching job.

“I needed to be able to pay my student loans after the grace period,” she says. “I knew that it would take a chunk out of my paycheck, and that I would be paying for years.”

Little did Foster know that things were about to change.

ANNOUNCING THE GIFT A couple of weeks before graduation, Leslie Evans, the College of Education’s director of student services and Foster’s adviser, called and requested to meet with her.

“I was worried,” Foster admits.

She wondered if something unforeseen had come up and she wasn’t going to be able to graduate. Evans assured her that the purpose of the meeting was good.

“The night before, all I could think is, ‘What could it be?’” Foster says.

The next day, College of Education Dean John Romans and Evans told Foster that a generous donor had established a scholarship to pay off her student loans.

“I was shocked. I thought, ‘Why me?’”

Foster says.

She was the beneficiary of Patel’s bucket-list item to put a stranger through college. As with any scholarship established by a donor, university officials worked with Patel to set criteria for the award — a hard-working science or math education graduating senior with a minimum GPA and student-loan debt. A college committee selected Foster.

During Patel’s graduation speech, he asked Foster to stand.

“Seven minutes ago, I was a total stranger to you and we have yet to meet,” he began. “I’ve been told that you are outstanding and an incredibly hard worker. If I can change your trajectory, you can change the trajectory of hundreds of kids. Danielle, my wife and I would like to pay off your student loans so you can start your career with no constraints.”

There were gasps at commencement when Patel announced that he was paying off Foster’s student loans.

“Graduation day is already such a big day, and it was multiplied by 1,000,” Foster says. “I will never forget it. It was a great moment.”

The recognition couldn’t have fallen on a better person, Angle says.

“She’s such a humble young lady,” she says. “She is so creative and never turns down a challenge.”

For Foster, it is difficult to put into words her gratitude for the Patels.

“Growing up with nothing makes you so thankful for what you do have, even as a broke college kid. (The Patels’ gift to pay off my student loans) is life-changing,” she says. “It also motivates me even more to go out and make a difference, and to come back and help.”

For now, Foster is determined to honor the investment through her work as a science teacher. She has accepted a position at Wellston Middle/High School in Oklahoma.

“I want to be someone at that highschool level to help instill love for science in students,” she says. “Every day, I will have the opportunity to change students’ trajectories. This experience made me realize you can make such a difference in someone’s life and it can be in a moment.”

There are many ways you can change a student’s trajectory by giving to Oklahoma State University. Find your Orange Passion today at OSUgiving.com.

Watch the moment of the announcement at commencement: okla.st/Patel_Gives_Commencement_Gift.

College of Education Dean John S.C. Romans recognizes Piyush Patel as a new member of the college’s Hall of Fame.

PHOTO / GARY LAWSON

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PHOTO / CHRIS LEWIS

We are all writing our life’s story, and the pen is in our hands. You have to be willing to risk not being great for the chance to learn how to do something great.”

—

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Joan Lunden

2017

SYMPOSIUM omen for Oklahoma State University hosted its ninth annual Symposium on April 27, highlighted by a keynote speech from one of the most recognizable women in America, Joan Lunden. The organization awarded 10 scholarships totaling $43,020, which were both records. The high demand for tickets led to the event being held at Gallagher-Iba Arena for the second year in a row.

Tables covered Eddie Sutton Court, hosting 510 attendees.

Lunden’s speech covered her trailblazing path from being a “weather girl” in Sacramento, California, to 19 years as co-host of Good Morning America. She also discussed her battle with triple negative breast cancer, which was diagnosed in June 2014 and required chemotherapy, surgery and radiation.

“When the going gets tough, you can’t quit,” Lunden says.

“You have to hang in there and believe you’re going to make it. … Sometimes the most important things we say all day are the things we tell ourselves. ‘Yes, I can do this.’”

She also talked about balancing her successful career and private life, including being a mother of seven. She included inspirational messages such as, “We are all writing our life’s story, and the pen is in our hands,” and, “You have to be willing to risk not being great for the chance to learn how to do something great.”

Amy Mitchell, an OSU alumna and chair of the group, provided an update on the organization. Overall, the group has awarded $187,370 in scholarships to 49 students. More than 3,000 women have attended its various events. The 43 current

PHOTO / MICHAEL MOLHOLT

BY JACOB LONGAN

Recap

OSU statistics professor Mindy McCann, left, and Jovette Dew, director of Diversity Academic Support/Trio Department, were among the 510 attendees at the April 27 event.

members of its council have given more than $120 million to support various needs at OSU, and the combined giving of everyone who attended the Symposium exceeded $147 million.

The master of ceremonies was alumna and journalist Jocelyn Lockwood. She and Mitchell closed the event by announcing that Octavia Spencer, Academy Award-winning actress, would be next year’s speaker. The 2018 Symposium is scheduled for April 5 and will be the highlight of the year-long celebration of the group’s 10th anniversary.

M A R K YO U R CA L ENDA R S FO R T H E 201 8 SYMP OS IUM featuring

Octavia Spencer T H U R S DAY, A PR I L 5 , 201 8 9:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. | OSU Campus, Stillwater Stay tuned for sponsorship and ticket opportunities.

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PHILANTHROPIST OF THE YEAR

inda Cline’s life has taken many unexpected turns, but it always seems to work out for the best. Along the way, she has enjoyed opportunities to share her blessings with others.

She met her future husband, Charlie, on a blind date in 1954, when Linda was in high school and Charlie was a junior-college cadet at Claremore’s Oklahoma Military Academy. They married three years later, and remained together until Charlie died in 2012. They raised two children and had plenty of professional success.

The couple joined Charlie’s brother, Neil, to establish and run Cherokee Lines trucking company from 1963 until 1990.

The business thrived, peaking at more than 100 trucks and even more trailers, hauling across the 48 contiguous states.

The Clines moved from Oklahoma City to Cushing in 1967. In 1985, they purchased the country acreage where they planned to retire. That year, they also bought the 17 horses that established Char-Lin Ranch, now a renowned producer of registered quarter horses and Angus cattle.

Char-Lin Ranch grew to more than 2,500 cattle and 300 horses, earning more than 200 world and reserve world championships before downsizing in recent years.

Neither Cline attended OSU, but they credited much of their success to the faculty’s willingness to visit the ranch, working with and teaching them. They fell in love with the institution where their daughter, Amy, earned a journalism degree and their son, Cary, sent his two daughters.

With OSU helping Char-Lin Ranch establish such a successful beginning, the Clines immediately started giving back to the equine program. Along with donations, they opened their ranch to student tours and hired countless OSU students. They also allowed the Department of Animal Science to use their animals for teaching opportunities, judging team practice, clinics and contests. They even donated several world-class horses to improve the genetics of OSU’s teaching herd and endowed a professorship.

In 2014, Linda made a major gift to fund the state-ofthe-art Charles and Linda Cline Equine Teaching Center.

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PHOTO / BENTON RUDD

Linda Cline

It includes a teaching barn with stalls for foaling mares, a small indoor arena, classroom, conference room, feed and tack room, a wash rack, treatment area and offices.

OSU Extension Services can host workshops and learning opportunities for students, 4-H clubs and FFA chapters, as well as the general public.

OSU honored Linda with two major awards in 2015. The Department of Animal Science presented her the Distinguished Service Award, and she was named a Division of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources Champion.

Cline supports many non-OSU causes as well, including the Right Path Riding Academy, which provides therapeutic horseback riding for those with special needs. She also supports Special Olympics, as well as Love I.N.C., which helps people in need and purchases Christmas presents for children. Another cause close to her heart is Shiloh Camp, a day camp for inner-city children in Oklahoma City. First United Methodist Church of Cushing also benefits from her service. In addition, Linda established a youth scholarship through the American Quarter Horse Association.

To watch a video about Linda Cline, visit

OSUgiving.com/women/philanthropist

PHOTO / CHRIS LEWIS

Women for OSU scholars include, from left, front row, Karlie Wade, Darci Klein, Wendy Lau Wong, Sulochana Paudyal and, back row, Christina Anaya, Megan DeVuyst, Courtney Mapes, Krista Boston-Fullerton, Abbey Grimes, and right, Ayrianna Swanson, who was studying abroad.

Student Scholarship Recipients ight recipients were named Women for OSU scholars: Christina Anaya, an integrative biology doctoral student from Fallbrook, California; Megan DeVuyst, an agribusiness junior from Morrison, Oklahoma; Abbey Grimes, a microbiology sophomore from Bartlesville, Oklahoma; Darci Klein, a counseling psychology doctoral student from St. Louis, Missouri; Wendy Lau Wong, an industrial engineering and management junior from Panama City, Panama, and Oklahoma City, Oklahoma; Courtney Mapes, an animal science junior from Alva, Oklahoma; Ayrianna Swanson, a French, microbiology and biochemistry sophomore from Oklahoma City; and Karlie Wade, an agricultural communications and pre-law sophomore from Perry, Oklahoma.

There were also two named scholarship awards announced. The Wirt June Newman Memorial Scholarship supports students planning a career in public or government service. It was presented to Krista Boston-Fullerton, an educational leadership and policy studies doctoral student from Stigler, Oklahoma. The Sheryl Benbrook Women for OSU Scholarship is designated for graduate students. This year’s recipient was Sulochana Paudyal, an entomology doctoral student from Bharatpur, Chitwan, Nepal.

To watch a video about each recipient, visit

OSUgiving.com/women/scholars

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DOEL R EED CEN TER FOR THE A RTS V ISITORS BEN EFIT COM MU NITIES Stillwater, Taos both served by artists, scholars

BY JAC O B LO N G A N

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research and interpretation,” Singleton says. “So looking at a site, a place, a location, through its flora, and figuring out how you can interpret the landscape using those materials. It changes every time depending on what plants are there, how the landscape is different and how I interpret it.”

Jim Vallion created the SmelserVallion Visiting Artist program with a generous donation in 2010. Thanks to his support, Singleton was at the Reed Center last summer for the academic class “The Science of Art.” She helped students make their own paper with plants gathered from the property, and she delivered a public lecture at Taos’ Harwood Museum. The two-day class in Stillwater replicated the summer course.

“This was our first time to do a community workshop, and we were thrilled with the turnout,” Moder says. “Megan was another fantastic contributor to our success creating wonderful experiences both places.”

Vallion also enjoyed the workshop.

“The presentation was very thorough,” Vallion says. “This was exactly what I had in mind when I created this position.”

Jim and Linda Burke, who funded the visiting scholar position, were also pleased with Rudnick’s Stillwater presentation.

“Bringing in great scholars and speakers has become such a fun thing to do every year,” says Linda Burke, a former language arts teacher. She

and her husband wanted to ensure the Reed Center promoted literature along with the visual arts.

Moder praised Rudnick for her enthusiastic talk about Mabel Dodge Luhan, who helped turn Taos into a mecca for artists and writers in the early 20th century. Among the long list of cultural icons Luhan hosted in Taos were artist Georgia O’Keeffe, photographer Ansel Adams, and novelists Aldous Huxley and Willa Cather.

PHOTO / PHIL SHOCKLEY

O

ne of the many benefits of Oklahoma State University’s Doel Reed Center for the Arts is bringing artists and scholars to Stillwater. The Taos, New Mexico, facility hosts academic and leisurelearning courses that are enhanced by the Smelser-Vallion Visiting Artist and the Jim and Linda Burke Visiting Scholar in Literature. The individuals who fill these positions each year also deliver public lectures in Taos and Stillwater.

Carol Moder, Reed Center director, says community outreach is a mission of the program.

“It really bridges the Taos and Stillwater experiences,” Moder says.

“The incredible artists and scholars do so much for our students as well as the communities in both states.”

Megan Singleton, the 2016 Burke Scholar, and Lois Rudnick, the 2016 Smelser-Vallion Artist, both visited Stillwater earlier this year.

Singleton, a St. Louis-based artist, spoke about the science and process of papermaking at the OSU Museum of Art on February 23, with about 30 attending the reception and talk. She then hosted a free papermaking workshop attended by 25 people the next day at the Stillwater Multi Arts Center.

Singleton explained that she incorporates local plants into her art whenever she travels.

“It’s taking the idea of exploration,

Lois Rudnick, center, with Jim and Linda Burke.

Rudnick, the former chair of University of Massachusetts Boston’s American Studies Department, was particularly drawn to Luhan because of her interdisciplinary passions.

“She was interested in creating these utopian communities, all of which had tremendous conflicts within them,” Rudnick says. “But that’s the way the world goes. Unlike most patrons, salon

Jim Vallion, who established the Smelser-Vallion Visiting Artist program, met Megan Singleton at her workshop.

Lois Rudnick, the 2016 Jim and Linda Burke Visiting Scholar in Literature, delivered a public lecture about Mabel Dodge Luhan on April 6 at the OSU Museum of Art.

PHOTOS / PHIL SHOCKLEY

hostesses or hosts, she was interested in everything: philosophy, psychology, literature, drama, photography, sculpture, painting, social reform, Native American rights. Her idea of creating an arts community was much broader.”

Rudnick spoke about Luhan to about 50 people at the OSU Museum of Art this spring. She also co-taught “New Mexico Regionalism and Modernism” last summer with former Reed Center director Ed Walkiewicz.

“When she interacted with the students in Taos, I’ve never heard more enthusiastic, rave reviews about the ability of a person to adapt to their interest, to give them information that was helpful to them, to tell them stories and be lively and amusing at the same time,” Moder says.

Moder says there are few positions in America similar to the Burke Visiting Scholar, which has led to interest from scholars across the globe.

“We’ve really had top-notch faculty apply for this position,” Moder says. “It has been great because it enriches the classes in Taos, and then we come back and do something for people in Stillwater.”

The 2017 Jim and Linda Burke Visiting Scholar is Spencer Herrera, a New Mexico State associate professor of Spanish specializing in Chicano literature, film and culture. In May, Herrera assisted with the Reed Center’s academic course “Tourism & Taos: Rhetorical Invention and Intervention.” He also visited the Harwood Museum for his presentation, “Etched in Wood: Cultural Propaganda and New Mexico True.” He will come to Stillwater this spring for another lecture.

The 2017 Smelser-Vallion Visiting Artist is Beverly Acha, who explores structure, time, space and the forces that shape our experiences through paintings, prints, drawings and sculptures.

A fellow at the Roswell Artist-inResident Program in New Mexico, Acha interacted with students in Andy Mattern’s two academic courses at the Reed Center in July: “Introduction to Photography for Non-Majors,” and “Height and Light Photography in New Mexico.” She also gave a public lecture at the Harwood Museum in July and will visit Stillwater next spring. O

Megan Singleton, the 2016 Smelser-Vallion Visiting Artist, held a papermaking workshop in Stillwater on Feb. 24.

For more information about the Doel Reed Center for the Arts, visit DRCA.okstate.edu.

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OSU student Liz Dueck provides a live painting experience in the lobby.

PHOTO / ZACHARY FURMAN

Art Advocates host successful fundraising event benefiting OSU Museum of Art

BY J O R DA N H AYS

n May 6, the OSU Museum of Art Advocates hosted its first fundraising gala, Masterpiece Moments: Artist at the Table, in support of the museum’s exhibitions and educational programming.

Attendees spent the evening touring a gallery of creative tablescapes inspired by famous artists (Warhol, Van Gogh and Degas, for example) and constructed by friends and advocates of the museum. The event also featured both a silent and live auction, offering original work donated by local and regional artists, and musical entertainment from April Golliver-Mohiuddin, director of opera studies at the OSU

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Department of Music; Dustin Boatright, a music education major from Edmond; and student group Pokeapella.

With a sellout crowd of more than 200 patrons and guests, Masterpiece Moments far exceeded all goals, netting more than $50,000 in support for the OSU Museum of Art. Plans are already being made for next year’s event, scheduled for April 28, 2018.

“As an advocate, I am passionate about the role of the museum in our community,” says Brenda Spaulding, Masterpiece Moments co-chair. “Because it is becoming increasingly more difficult to provide art within our public schools, I think these types of educational programming and resources can help bridge that gap.”

Spaulding, a co-chair with Shawn Howell, belongs to a group of OSU Museum of Art Advocates who support the museum through outreach, volunteer work and annual financial contributions. The Art Advocates play a vital role in expanding the museum’s reach in the community, providing transformational art experiences to as many people as possible, while helping to grow the emerging artistic culture of OSU and Stillwater. Art Advocates provide gifts of $100 or more and are recognized in a variety of ways.

Since opening its doors in 2013, the museum has had more than 16,000 visitors. It houses OSU’s permanent art collection and hosts a variety of exhibitions, educational programs and community events each year.

Tablescape by Jena Kodesh and Diana Riley: Vincent Van Gogh’s Sunflowers.

PHOTO / ZACHARY FURMAN

“The Art Advocates provide a structure for the museum to engage the community in our programming,” says Victoria Rowe Berry, director of the OSU Museum of Art. “By promoting our exhibitions and raising money for educational programming and high-profile exhibitions, they are bringing a bigger audience to the museum events.”

Advocates have supported events including one of the museum’s most successful exhibition series, the New York Project. The exhibition will continue this fall with Kiki Smith and Paper: The Body, the Muse, and the Spirit. The New York Project brings the work of major New York artists of the past 50 years to Oklahoma. The third in the series, on view until December 2, will present a selection of drawing and prints by Smith, heralded as one of the most significant artists of her generation.

To learn more about being an Art Advocate, visit museum.okstate.edu/osu-museum-art-advocates.

SAVE the DATE for next year’s event!

MASTERPIECE MOMENTS: ARTIST AT THE TABLE WAS MADE POSSIBLE WITH THE SUPPORT OF THESE GENEROUS SPONSORS AND COMMUNITY MEMBERS.

RENAISSANCE LEVEL Maggie Barrett & Jim Vallion OSU Foundation OSU President’s Office IMPRESSIONIST LEVEL Deb & Dave Engle EXPRESSIONIST LEVEL Judi Baker BancFirst Vicky & Tom Berry Linda Cline & Amy Cline Malinda & Dick Fischer

Diane & Robert Graalman Marilyn & Richard Heath Jeanene & Ron Hulsey Marilyn & Darrel Kletke Pope Distributing, Nate Huddleston Jeri & Alan Seefeldt Matt Hull, Edward Jones Carolyn Gang & Ed Noltensmeyer ADDITIONAL SPONSORS Bank SNB Thomas N. Berry & Co. Brenda & Craig Spaulding Shawn & John Howell

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Tuning in on Tulsa Time KOSU joins forces with Red Dirt Ranger for new music show

BY K E L LY B U R L E Y

J

ohn Cooper is bullish on Tulsa. The OSU alumnus (’82 education), who has been an integral part of the city’s local music scene for nearly three decades through his band, the Red Dirt Rangers, is exploring the lives and musical tastes of Tulsa, one guest at a time, as executive producer for a new music program dubbed Tune in Tulsa.

“Each episode features a guest from the community who is responsible for selecting the music playlist,” Cooper says.

“We spin the music and have a conversation about the selections and how they influenced our guest’s life and work.”

Tune in Tulsa, hosted by Tulsa-based writer Julie Watson, is produced from KOSU’s new Tulsa studios next to the Woody Guthrie Center in the Brady Arts District. Already, KOSU has recorded episodes featuring Michael Chaiken, curator of the Tulsa-based Bob Dylan archives; Neal Casal, guitarist with the Chris Robinson Brotherhood, who is deeply connected with the city’s local music scene; and co-star of O Brother, Where Art Thou? Tim Blake Nelson, a Tulsa native and actor/director. Future episodes will feature musicians, artists, authors, actors, community leaders and other interesting people who share a connection with the city.

As the program’s executive producer, Cooper’s familiarity and involvement in the Tulsa community are expected to contribute to its success. He recently co-founded the Red Dirt Relief Fund to help musicians struggling with unplanned medical and other expenses.

The depth of Cooper’s own musical talents were recognized in June, when his band was inducted into the Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame for its many contributions to the state’s music scene. Through it

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all, Cooper says he owes a lot to his adopted hometown.

“After college, it was an easy decision to make Tulsa our home base because of its rich music history, from venues such as Cain’s Ballroom and its connection to Bob Wills and the Texas Playboys to the Church Studio, made famous by Leon Russell, as well as its reputation as a music destination city,” Cooper says.

After recording a pilot of “Tune in Tulsa,” program When he’s not singing and staff gather outside the studio including, from strumming his mandolin on left, KOSU General Manager Kelly Burley; host stage, Cooper is leveraging his Julie Watson; guest Tim Blake Nelson, actor/direcmusic chops and industry expetor; Scott Bell, studio engineer; and Executive rience to help Oklahoma State Producer John Cooper, KOSU business development University’s public radio station representative. build a stronger presence in the state’s second-largest city.

Since last year, he has played an expanded role as a full-time business development representative for the station.

“Joining KOSU has brought my career full circle,” Cooper says. “I started playing music when I was a student at OSU, and now I get to tap into everything I’ve learned as a working musician to help KOSU grow The Red Dirt Rangers, including John Cooper in the its presence in Tulsa, especially red bandana, jam for a crowd of 12,000 at a free 4th through the station’s music of July party in Drumright. Band members, from programming.” left, are Randy Crouch, Cooper, Brad Piccolo, Don Since 2012, Cooper and Morris and Ben Han. bandmate Brad Piccolo have hosted a Sunday evening music show Tulsa studios in the FlyLoft, will help on KOSU, The Red Dirt Radio Hour, KOSU strengthen its connection with the showcasing the music that influences the city,” Cooper says. “Tulsa is in the midst Red Dirt genre, which includes country, of an incredible transformation, and I’m folk, bluegrass, blues and soul. Cooper’s excited about the opportunities that exist production expertise tells him KOSU’s for us to be part of that renaissance, espenewest music program will be popular on cially as we showcase the work of local multiple levels. musicians.”

“I believe Tune in Tulsa, and our new

Pete says,

You can help us find the next generation of Cowboys by identifying potential students. You provide the contact information. We do the rest.

The NASA Connection

Oklahoma State University-Tulsa materials science and engineering graduates finding success with specialized training in high-demand fields

BY K I M A R C H E R

O

klahoma State University-Tulsa graduate students Aaron Laney and Ian Juby are on a journey that years ago both could only dream about.

NASA hired the two students recently as composite pressure vessel experts — starting their work at Johnson Space Center in Houston months before they had even graduated.

“I never really thought I could get a position at NASA. It was just a dream,” says Laney, who was a master’s degree student in materials science and engineering. “It only happened because of my study and research at OSU-Tulsa.”

In particular, Laney works to ensure that all of NASA’s incoming composite pressure vessels conform to safety and quality standards. Juby, also a master’s degree student, was hired for a similar position.

“Honestly, I never in a million years thought NASA would consider me as a candidate,” Juby says. “When I tell people I never worked for the government before, they are blown away because it rarely happens that a person is hired to work for NASA without going the traditional route such as internships and co-ops. I am truly honored that the faculty at OSU continued to push me to achieve greatness.”

Composite pressure vessels are tanks built to withstand high pressure and can be used in products from paintball guns to rockets that fly to the International Space Station. Researchers work to improve the

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strength or flexibility of the vessels by combining materials with different physical or chemical properties to create new composites.

“The area of composite pressure vessels is a specialized discipline and few universities I am aware of offer education and training in the field,” Laney says.

Before he was hired, Juby says NASA advertised his position twice and more than 700 people applied for the job each time. But apparently, none of those applicants fit NASA’s requirements.

“Composite pressure vessels is a very niche market,” he says. “There are few with this expertise. I thought there were more of us with this specialization, but that is not the case, either nationally or internationally.”

Through a distinct combination of hands-on experience, state-of-the-art research facilities, faculty connections and industry ties, OSU-Tulsa prepares materials science and engineering graduate students for high-level careers with employers such as NASA. “Our MSE program is designed to provide an understanding of how research moves from an idea in the laboratory to commercialization,” says Raman P. Singh, associate dean of the College of Engineering, Architecture and Technology at OSU-Tulsa and head of the School of Materials Science and Engineering. “By working with local industry to create products that are needed in the marketplace, our graduates have a breadth of knowledge

and experience that is in high demand by employers.”

Laney and Juby started their education at Tulsa Community College and chose OSU for both their undergraduate and graduate degrees. OSU-Tulsa enabled both young men to work full-time and stay in Tulsa.

“OSU-Tulsa prepares students for jobs that are in demand and many companies locally and nationwide are interested in our graduates,” says OSU-Tulsa President Howard Barnett. “OSU-Tulsa’s mission is to give nontraditional students like Aaron and Ian the opportunity to reach their fullest potential. By providing a worldclass education with flexible hours and agreements with two-year colleges that make it easy to transfer here, OSU-Tulsa helps students excel in education and their careers.”

While graduate students, Laney and Juby assisted a startup company, Infinite Composites Technologies, with research and development of an infinite composite pressure vessel, or iCPV™, a liner-less composite natural gas fuel tank.

As the home of the OSU School of Materials Science and Engineering, the Helmerich Research Center has a facility

Doctoral student Eric Drake works in a lab at the Helmerich Research Center at OSU-Tulsa.

Graduate students Ian Juby, left, and Aaron Laney show two composite pressure vessels they worked with at the Helmerich Research Center.

PHOTOS / RYAN JENSEN

use agreement with the company, one of many industry connections that Ranji Vaidyanathan, OSU-Tulsa’s Varnadow professor of materials science and engineering, brings to the MSE program.

“Dr. Vaidyanathan gave me a job as an undergraduate at the Helmerich Research Center and it had to do with composite pressure vessels,” Laney says. “I stuck with composite pressure vessels through graduate school. That became my thing.”

Juby also gives Vaidyanathan credit for introducing him to the field of composite pressure vessels, particularly since he has industry contacts and realworld experience.

“Like Dr. Vaidyanathan, a lot of professors at OSU-Tulsa have experience outside of academia,” Juby says. “Those professors are able to bring that experience into their teaching. They really engage students

and provide more depth of knowledge in a personal way.”

The research Laney and Juby worked on was funded by sources including the Oklahoma Center for the Advancement of Science and Technology, which has awarded several faculty substantial grants needed to carry out research projects. Vaidyanathan has been awarded about $800,000 in grants since 2013 for composite pressure vessel research and development at OSU-Tulsa.

OSU-Tulsa also has provided opportunities for its materials science and engineering research students in other areas.

Eric Drake, who graduated in May with a master’s degree in materials science and engineering, was awarded a highly coveted internship at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston.

His focus was the development of safe, high-performing battery designs — another research area at Helmerich Research Center.

“My job was to find the means to prevent thermal runaway in batteries as this can lead to fires, or worse, the battery exploding — obviously not a good thing when used on the International Space Station,” says Drake, who now is pursuing a doctoral degree in materials science and engineering at OSU-Tulsa.

Laney says collaboration among OSU-Tulsa faculty and their industry connections have allowed him the opportunity to gain experience that will have a lasting effect on his career.

“I don’t think you get that kind of interdisciplinary collaboration at other places,” Laney says. “After getting out in the workforce, I realized that the OSU program is above par. It is a truly great place and I owe OSU-Tulsa so much for providing a quality education.”

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OSUIT

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BACK to BASICS

BY S A R A P L U M M E R

“Over the years, I’ve had a lot of opportunities to train people, and it all stems from OSUIT. They taught us the basic knowledge of what you needed. If you don’t know how it works, how are you going to fix it?

It’s the same whether you’re working on computers, truck engines or hydraulic systems.” — Charley Been

G

rowing up, Charley Been had a vision of what he wanted to build his career and future around, but like many people, life seemed to have other plans.

“I went into the U.S. Air Force, so I could then work at American Airlines, but I found out I was color blind,” so he had to adjust his dream.

“I met a guy who was a diesel mechanic and was making good money, so I came over to OSU Institute of Technology and toured the facility,” says Been, who graduated from the School of Diesel & Heavy Equipment in 1977.

After graduation, Been worked at Ryder Transportation, where he started as a mechanic then moved up to shop foreman and then service manager.

For the past 12 years, Been has worked at MHC Kenworth and now serves as shop foreman at the company’s Tulsa location.

During his decades in the industry, Been has also served as a teacher and mentor for many of those who have worked for him.

“Over the years, I’ve had a lot of opportunities to train people, and it all stems from OSUIT. They taught us the basic knowledge of what you needed,” he says. “If you don’t know how it works, how are you going to fix it? It’s the same whether you’re working on computers, truck engines or hydraulic systems.”

That’s how Been got his start in mechanics when he was young — figuring out how things worked.

“I would mow yards and rake leaves.

Someone would give me an old lawn mower, and I would have to fix it. I had some old cars, and I had to work on them to get them to run,” he says. “If you let me tear it down, I’ll figure out how to fix it.”

A lot has changed in the diesel and truck industry since Been graduated, and now he works to keep up with the everchanging and advancing technology used in the vehicles.

“When I came up in the field, it was all mechanical. The only electrical things on a truck were the AM/FM radio and CB radio. It’s pretty amazing when you look at it now,” Been says. “The only way I’ve been able to keep up is we send people out to classes to learn, and I learn from them.”

The future of his industry includes self-driving trucks with smaller and cleaner engines. But at its core, there is still that basic knowledge that technicians have to have in order to be a success.

“It’s still a mechanical piece of equipment, but it’s run by an electrical system.

We have to determine if it’s a mechanical problem or an electrical problem,” he says.

“Everything stems from the basics.”

Those same basics Been learned at OSUIT. “The impact OSUIT had on my life, I wanted to help,” he says, so he’s given back to the university through serving on advisory boards and finding internship and full-time positions for OSUIT students and graduates.

To recognize his continued support of his alma mater, Been was one of eight alumni who were inducted into the OSUIT Alumni Hall of Fame in June.

“When you have people come and tell you you’ve impacted their life — you know, I just go to work, and do my job to the best of my ability,” he says, so it was a surprise and an honor to learn he was being recognized. “I like to know that through my career, I’ve been an inspiration to other people. You don’t realize the impact you have on people.”

Charley Been, a 1977 graduate of OSU Institute of Technology’s School of Diesel & Heavy Equipment, is now shop foreman at MHC Kenworth in Tulsa. Been, who has worked in the truck industry for 40 years, takes pride in training and mentoring new technicians in the field.

PHOTOS / KYLE LOMENICK

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Ashlee Floyd is following her dream to become a cardiovascular sonographer.

Lessons from the Heart

O

SU-Oklahoma City student Ashlee Floyd had high expectations for the school’s Diagnostic Sonography Program and what it would mean for her future. What she didn’t expect was that it would reveal her own life-threatening congenital heart condition.

After graduating from high school, Floyd researched her educational options in cardiovascular sonography and chose OSU-OKC based on the program’s stellar reputation and high student success and job placement rates. During her first week in the program, she and a classmate were partnering in a routine practice scanning session when her partner noticed something abnormal in Floyd’s scan. She called the instructors over to take a look.

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PHOTOS / MICHELLE TALAMANTES

BY S A N DY PA N T L I K

Karen Bubb, head of OSU-OKC’s Diagnostic Medical Sonography Department, was one of the instructors who reviewed Floyd’s scan.

“On occasion, we will run across a subtle suspected abnormality, and we will typically discuss it with the student and advise them to visit their doctor for followup,” Bubb says. “However, in Ashlee’s case, we realized we needed to handle her situation delicately. First and foremost, we didn’t want her to panic. I gently explained to her that this issue was most likely congenital, meaning she has had it her entire life, so it wasn’t an acute emergency.

However, it was something that needed to be addressed and verified by a doctor.”

“I remember calling my mom on the way home from class and saying, ‘I think getting into this program was definitely a God thing,’” Floyd says. “At that point, we weren’t thinking it was anything serious.”

Unfortunately, a visit to the cardiologist would prove otherwise. In May 2016, Floyd was diagnosed with a sinus venosus atrial septal defect, or ASD (a hole in the wall of the heart that separates the top two chambers), and partial anomalous pulmonary venous return (two pulmonary veins connected to the heart’s right atrium instead of the left).

There is never a good time to receive such a diagnosis, but for Floyd, it was particularly challenging because she was planning for her upcoming July wedding.

With the doctor’s OK to wait a few weeks longer, she scheduled open-heart surgery one week after her wedding with hopes she could return to the sonography program for the upcoming fall semester.

The four-hour procedure successfully repaired Floyd’s heart and put her on the road to recovery.

“I didn’t know just how bad I actually felt until they fixed the issue,” Floyd says.

“Now I feel so much better!”

Bubb says Ashlee didn’t want the surgery to interfere with her classes and chose a date when she could miss a few weeks without falling behnd.

“We were fully prepared for Ashlee to be out for at least half of the next semester,” Bubb says. “She surprised us and came back within a week after the semester started.”

This May, Floyd graduated from OSU-OKC with an associate degree in cardiovascular sonography. She was thrilled to be able to finish her last semesters of the program in OSU-OKC’s new Allied Health Building, outfitted with the latest in sonography training equipment. The high-tech skills sonography lab is more than twice the size of the old one, containing a lead-lined room and state-ofthe-art equipment for the radiologic technology program.

“Having trained in both spaces, there is such a difference in these new machines,” Floyd says. “I feel like I got a lot of practice before I am actually on the job. I am definitely better prepared for my profession.”

One of the first grants OSU-OKC pursued for the Allied Health Building, which opened in August 2016, was from the United States Department of Commerce Economic Development Administration (EDA).

“We were ecstatic to learn OSU-OKC would receive a $940,000 EDA grant to put toward the Allied Health Building and equipment,” says OSU-OKC President Natalie Shirley. “I am grateful for partners like EDA who share our vision to invest in the innovation needed to help our students and community be successful.”

Cornell Wesley, EDA economic development representative for Oklahoma and North Texas, said the EDA is intentional with its effort to support universities, and OSU-OKC is a great example.

“With the understanding of how poorly Oklahoma performs nationally in health ratings, it’s important to target tools for students to become the professionals who help improve those outcomes,” Wesley says.

Ashlee Floyd’s father, Blake Callaham, congratulates her during the Diagnostic Medical Sonography Pinning Ceremony.

Floyd recently passed her first national registry exam and is preparing for one more. She plans to follow her dream to become a cardiovascular sonographer at a hospital or clinic.

“In addition to the education I received, I believe this personal experience will help me relate to my patients on a whole other level,” Floyd says. “When they are lying on my sonography table, I will know how they feel. I will have greater empathy and be able to talk them through it.”

“Ashlee excelled in the program. She is an impressive young woman and an excellent sonographer. I’m just glad we could help her when she needed it the most,” Bubb says. “I think her circumstances have solidified the importance of what we are doing here at OSU-OKC. We are training students to help save lives, including their own.”

“We are training students to help save lives, including their own.”

— Karen Bubb OSU-OKC Diagnostic Medical Sonography Department Head

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How Real-World Experience Is Preparing Me For Clinical Rotations PHOTO / PHIL SHOCKLEY

BY M I C H A E L

SUT TON

“I

wish I understood diabetes so that I could control it rather than it control me,” “Sally” told me.

She is a patient at the Tulsa Day Center for the Homeless (and her real name is not Sally). Like many diabetic patients at the Day Center, “Sally” was overwhelmed and confused about her diabetes diagnosis.

As an Albert Schweitzer Fellow and osteopathic medical student at the Oklahoma State University College of Osteopathic Medicine in Tulsa, I had the opportunity to design a diabetes education program at the Day Center for hundreds of patients just like “Sally.”

The Albert Schweitzer Fellowship supports health professional graduate students in 15 regions around the United States to become leaders in their field. In addition to regular coursework, fellows implement a 200-hour community-based service project that addresses a local unmet health need. In addition, fellows develop as lifelong leaders through development training, peer reflection and mentorship.

Experience in the community Tulsa’s homeless population faces barriers in their management of diabetes, and at the time I became an Albert Schweitzer Fellow, there was no formal program at the Day Center to educate patients about diabetes and how to manage it. The experience of designing and implementing a diabetes education program in partnership with the Day Center’s leadership team has been profound, as it has filled an immense gap in the community. Working directly with patients in a primary care clinic and

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Michael Sutton attends the Oklahoma State University Center for Health Sciences College of Osteopathic Medicine in Tulsa.

His article originally ran in “The DO,” a news website produced by the American Osteopathic Association. developing individualized counseling and education for patients helps them gain better control of their diabetes.

In our short time together, “Sally” learned how to correctly check her blood-glucose levels and properly store her medication.

We also scheduled an appointment with an optometrist for vision screening. “Sally” left the clinic feeling empowered in her ability to manage her disease. In experiences like this, my project has given me skills I may have never gained in the classroom.

Preparing future physicians Even though the first and second years of medical school traditionally mean bookwork and learning how to do physicals on patients in a simulation clinic, a critical part of early medical education is gaining experience in a primary care setting.

Supplementing my education with real-life experience at the Day Center became possible through the Schweitzer Fellowship.

Because of the importance of real-life experiences outside the classroom, opportunities like the Albert Schweitzer Fellowship are invaluable. These opportunities cultivate leaders by giving students real-life community-based experiences and by pushing students to think critically about health care barriers within their communities.

I am fortunate that OSU supports opportunities like the Schweitzer Fellowship for students to address real health issues in the community. Medical schools across the country can accomplish their goal of graduating well-trained and knowledgeable physicians by endorsing opportunities for students to conduct community-based projects that fill unmet health needs.

GRAND OPENING

9.29.17

Join us for the opening of the

A.R. and Marylouise Tandy Medical Academic Building

Medical training in Oklahoma will never be the same.

To learn more about how OSU-CHS is improving health in Oklahoma, please visit us at www.healthsciences.okstate.edu

1111 West 17th Street

Tulsa, OK 74107-1898

918-582-1972

PHOTO / DERINDA BLAKENEY

Jose Oyola Morales earned a doctoral degree in veterinary medicine after recovering from brain surgery.

The Unexpected Scholarships help ease student’s mind in coping with brain surgery

B

BY D E R I N DA B L A K E N E Y

orn in San Borja, Peru, Jose Oyola Morales discovered his love for animals on his grandparents’ farm. He later lived in Delaware and chose Oklahoma State University as the place where he would earn a veterinary medicine degree — or would he?

It was in the spring of 2015 as Jose was finishing his second year of veterinary college that the headaches began. One of the headaches was so severe it caused him to vomit for several hours.

“If you looked at me back then, there was nothing necessarily besides my symptoms that said anything was actually brewing underneath,” Jose recalls. “But Dr. Jim Anderson at the OSU clinic picked up on the clues and said, ‘Let’s just go get you an MRI.’ That evening, I had an MRI at Stillwater Medical Center. That was probably one of the best hospitals I’ve been to. The radiologist pulled me aside after it was done and said, ‘I just want to take a moment and talk to you about the

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images that we have because otherwise, you’re going to worry for the entire week before my actual final report comes out.’

“He showed me the pictures and it’s very clear that there is this mass on the right side of my brain. The first thought that comes to mind — is it cancer? He said in this case, it’s not. It’s actually called an arteriovenous malformation or AVM. It’s an abnormality of vessels in which an artery goes straight into a vein instead of going into a capillary.”

Based on his symptoms, Jose was advised to see a neurosurgeon in the area as quickly as he could.

It was very difficult for Jose. He had a lot of thinking to do. Finishing veterinary school was in jeopardy. If left untreated, the AVM could rupture. He would most likely have permanent brain damage or he could even die. If removed, he could lose part of his vision. The finances of the situation put him in a difficult position as well.

“One evening, I decided to contact one of the leading neurosurgeons, Dr. Michael Lawton at the University of California

San Francisco Medical Center,” he says.

“When I emailed him, I didn’t really think he was going to reply because he’s probably very sought after, not to mention that it was just one of those emails from a random person.”

However, the next morning Jose had a reply.

“I told him my story and that I was in school in veterinary medicine. He said he wouldn’t charge me for the consultation fee, he would look at the files and get back to me,” Jose says. “Within a week, he asked me to come to California. ‘We’ll do further diagnostics to track down exactly where the AVM is located and have it removed safely for you,’ he said. ‘I can promise you I’ll do my best to avoid having you lose any vision.’ Everyone else was hesitant to give me any sort of good prognosis. And I understand. I know that you want to be very careful with what you relay to clients. And so his willingness to sort of make that promise, even though you know it would be difficult, is what made me go forward with him.”

Jose had the surgery in California

lifesaving,” he says. “When I was going through this entire process, I was always worried about, ‘How am I going to cover all these expenses?’ I had already taken out a set of loans to finance my education.

Without scholarships, it would have been impossible for me to juggle the finances doing the diagnostic workup for my condition and then going and having the surgery.

“I couldn’t have picked a better place than Oklahoma State to be diagnosed and treated with this. I am very, very thankful to the donors for supporting our veterinary school and helping me finish my degree.”

Jose graduated with the class of 2017 on May 12.

“I’m very excited to have made it this far,” he says. “I’m thankful for the staff, both academic and general, who have helped me get here. I think all the training that I have received has prepared me to be a practice-ready veterinarian. I’m going to make the best of everything that’s happened and I really look forward to being a veterinarian finally.”

Following graduation, the couple moved to Texas. Jose will practice at a Banfield Veterinary Hospital in Denton, and Melissa will join a Banfield Veterinary Hospital in Fort Worth. Both will focus on small animal medicine with some exotic pets such as rabbits, hamsters, lizards and snakes.

Throughout his four years in the veterinary program at Oklahoma State, Jose received the following scholarships:

“Dr. Jose Oyola Morales perfectly exemplifies the type of student we had in mind when we created the Dr. Craig and Stephanie Jones Endowed Scholarship,” Craig says. “Many times during veterinary school, I found myself in financial need.

An anonymous donor stepped forward to help me during this struggle, and I promised I would one day repay the generosity.

I am honored that a young man such as Jose was the recipient of our scholarship.”

If you would like to support veterinary student scholarships, contact Chris Sitz, senior director of development with the OSU Foundation, at (405) 385-5170 or csitz@osugiving.com.

Watch a video about Jose’s experiences on OSTATE.TV at okla.st/ Vet_Med_Jose_Oyola_Morales.

Jose Oyola Morales survived brain surgery and recovered to examine animals during his veterinary school clinical practice rotations.

Austin and Audrey Weedn Foundation Scholarship (2014 and 2016) Dr. Craig and Mrs. Stephanie Jones Endowed Scholarship (2015) Ethel Peters Endowed Scholarship (2017) Robert G. and Karen F. Beach Scholarship (2017) American College of Veterinary Radiology Award (2017)

PHOTO / PHIL SHOCKLEY

during the summer of 2015. His girlfriend and classmate, Melissa Nelson, accompanied him on the trip. It was a long process.

“It took three days — one day to do the diagnostics, then the surgery, and then further diagnostics to make sure everything was taken care of, and luckily, it was a success,” Jose says. “That summer we were working at OSU. Melissa was helping Dr. Jared Taylor with one of his projects and I was working with Dr. Todd Holbrook. Both were excellent in terms of helping us schedule everything so we could fly out there and Melissa could be with me during the entire procedure. I chose to bring her to California because I thought that my mom and my dad would be very, very nervous and I didn’t want to put them through that ordeal. My parents stayed by my side — calling me every day, talking to me, encouraging me. Melissa was there to physically help me. Once I came out of the surgery, I had a moment in which I was very lucid. Everything was normal and then all of a sudden, my brain swelled, as expected, and then I couldn’t walk.

I had a hard time talking, a hard time focusing. She was there just helping me to move forward, and I think that made a big difference.”

Jose spent seven more days hospitalized before going home to finish his recovery. He has some residual effects from the AVM. “I have a bit of a blurry visual field on the left corner of my left eye,” he says.

“Wearing glasses helps me not focus on that little edge of blurriness. It doesn’t affect my driving. It doesn’t affect my surgical skills or my medicine at all. It’s just one of those things that reminds you of what you went through. I’m very excited because it’s one of the things that I was very concerned about — whether I was going to have any visual loss that would impede me from doing the job that I want to do which is veterinary medicine.”

And how did Jose handle the medical expenses on top of the cost of earning a veterinary medical degree? It was through the help of generous scholarship donors.

“I think those scholarships were

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Donors support needs across OSU during two-day event

BY A N N A M C C R A R E Y

Give Orange was Oklahoma State University’s inaugural day-of-giving event. Cowboys from all over, including 48 states, came together to support Oklahoma State University with gifts of all sizes to all types of funds through this social-media-driven giving campaign. It ran for 1,890 minutes in recognition of the university’s founding on Dec. 25, 1890. Follow this timeline for a journey through those 31½ hours from 7 a.m. on April 11 through 2:30 p.m. on April 12.

Minute | 1

The first gift of the day arrives. $18.90 for America’s Greatest Homecoming Celebration.

Minute | 73

Minute | 1,600

The Spears School of Business and the College of Education are neck and neck on the college leaderboard with a combined 129 gifts.

Can Give Orange turn the map orange with a gift from every state? So far we have Oklahoma, Texas, Arkansas and New York.

Minute | 1,680

Minute | 840

Minute | 1,698

At the end of the longest shift in Cowboy Caller history, student callers have raised $12,511 from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. on April 11.

Minute | 873

The College of Education unlocks a $5,000 match.

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FA L L 2 0 1 7

A surprise $32,000 donation helps Give Orange surpass $150,000.

97 generous donors unlock “Herald Your Fame” as the theme for America’s Greatest Homecoming Celebration.

Minute | 1,875

100 student gifts to the Cowboy Strong Student Emergency Fund, unlock a $1,000 match.

“This day was about

celebrating the impact of philanthropy on OSU and encouraging as many alumni and friends as possible to Give Orange. It was an exciting 1,890 minutes, and I look forward to seeing how it grows in 2018.”

Kirk Jewell

“My

OSU Foundation president

Orange Passion is giving back.

Ever since I was a little girl, my

parents, who are both OSU alumni, taught me to give back to the community that has given so much to me. OSU has become my community, and I have made it my priority to use my unique talents to invest in others during my time here.”

Julia Benbrook

Give Orange student host and 2017 Miss OSU

Thank you to everyone who chose to Give Orange!

It’s incredible to see the impact the Cowboy Family has when we come together. See you in 2018 for the next 1,890 minutes of support for OSU.

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What

LOVELY TEETH T. rex Had …

BY A D R I A N N A C U N N I N G H A M

OSU professor’s research project finds dinosaur’s bite was the strongest ever

PHOTO / PHIL SHOCKLEY

W Paul Gignac is an evolutionary biomechanist and vertebrate paleontologist.

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hile it’s always been assumed that a Tyrannosaurus rex had an intense, deadly bite, the reality has been nobody knows.

Until now.

New research involving an OSU professor finds the T. rex could chomp down with a nearly 8,000-pound bite, equal to the force of three cars.

Paul Gignac, assistant professor of anatomy and vertebrate paleontology at Oklahoma State University and Gregory Erickson, professor of biological science at Florida State University, reveal in their research how the T. rex could gnash its teeth hard enough to shatter the bones of its prey.

“Through incredible, nearly 8,000pound bite forces and record-breaking, 431,000 pounds per square inch tooth pressures, T. rex regularly scored, deeply punctured and even sliced through bones,” Gignac says.

The T. rex may have used crushed bones as nutrients. Other carnivorous dinosaurs lacked the large and robust teeth of T. rex so they weren’t known to have crushed and consumed bone.

The pressures of T. rex teeth outperform all the other predators to date. The previous record holder was the saltwater crocodile with a bite of 360,000 pounds per square inch, despite being significantly smaller than the dinosaur.

“This is an intriguing discovery because modern crocodilians and T. rex construct their teeth in almost exactly the same way, which suggests that they are operating at tooth pressures that are nearing the extreme structural limits of what reptilian tooth enamel can handle,” Gignac says. “One reason why the teeth are so interesting to us is that there appears to be only a few ways to ‘build’ a bone-eating reptile, which has more to do with limitations on dental strength than to bite force.”

While the T. rex is massive in size, its teeth — huge, cone-shaped and strongly rooted — deserve the credit.

Paul Gignac’s lab specializes in developing three-dimensional bio-imaging techniques and applying engineering principles to questions about how modern and fossil animals function. He has a pair of grants from the National Science Foundation to develop soft-tissue imaging tools and to study the neurological evolution of flight as ground-dwelling dinosaurs gradually turned into lofty birds.

PHOTO / PHIL SHOCKLEY

The newfound research may give more information about how bone-eating mammals, with more complicated enamel, evolved differently, allowing them to conquer similar adversity.

The study showcases a new perspective on how complex feeding systems, such as for those who consume bone which is typically associated with modern mammals and their immediate ancestors, were also prevalent during the Age of Dinosaurs.

In order to conduct this research, Gignac and Erickson developed a 3D anatomical model that could predict the bite force of various animals. Soon after accurately predicting the bite force of the American alligator, Gignac and Erickson used the CT scan from a preserved T. rex skull as a foundation for the research.

The muscle layout of the T. rex was digitally reconstructed from a combination of crocodile and birdlike characteristics. Gignac and Erickson also used information from the bone structure of the dinosaur’s skull as reference for its muscle structure.

The anatomical model made it possible for the researchers to predict the bite force of the T. rex at any tooth position along the jaw.

Gignac’s lab specializes in developing 3D bio-imaging techniques and applying the fundamentals of engineering to questions about how modern and fossil animals function.

He has two grants from the National Science Foundation to develop soft-tissue imaging tools and to study the neurological evolution of flight as dinosaurs gradually evolved into birds.

“For these projects, I advanced new techniques for high-resolution study of muscles, bones and nerves, and I extended these tools to also better understand the unique paleobiology of T. rex,” Gignac says.

Predators like the T. rex were able to take advantage of high-risk, high-reward resources. Since they could pulverize their prey at any given second, T. rex could survive lean times by using the nutrients in carcasses more fully than other animals could.

The outrageous bite force and strongly rooted teeth set the T. Rex apart from all other dinosaur predators. This is identical to how modern bone-eating carnivores such as gray wolves and spotted hyenas reign at the top of their respective food chain.

This study helps better understand how such a unique dinosaur made a living and increases the comprehension of the T. rex’s historical environment.

“Bottom line, T. rex is an intriguing animal however you slice it,” Gignac says.

“It has been the target of scientific inquiry for more than a century because it has such a strange combination of features for a reptile. Understanding how these traits worked in concert, like the approach we took here, is key to unraveling how this unique predator dominated the end of the Cretaceous in North America.”

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230 S. KNOBLOCK ST., STILLWATER, OK 74074 | 405-372-4777

MARY CAMPBELL, A SENIOR SCIENTIST FOR COCA COLA, graduated with her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in biosystems and agricultural engineering from Oklahoma State University in 2003 and 2006. She has a special place in her heart for OSU because she met her husband, Heath Campbell, in Stillwater. He earned a bachelor’s degree in marketing in 2002. They met waiting tables at a local restaurant the summer after her junior year. Campbell and her husband made many friends in their sorority and fraternity houses, Zeta Tau Alpha and Lambda Chi Alpha.

Along with finding love in Stillwater, Campbell got involved with several organizations that expanded her network and taught her important skills she utilizes in her work at Coca Cola.

“My department gave a lot to me with my educational experiences, so it is important to give back by helping out on the advisory committee and staying active as an alumni,” she says.

Product Development Campbell recalls how the ratio of teachers to students was small when she was a student, allowing more interaction with the professors. She values all the knowledge she acquired from her professors in the biosystems engineering department.

“Dr. Danielle Bellmer had a huge impact on my career. She was my mentor for a freshman research program,” Campbell says. “She is an extremely talented engineer and strong female role model.”

Working in the Robert M. Kerr Food & Agricultural Products Center as a student gave Campbell exposure to projects such as the creation of sliced peanut butter, sparking her interest in product development.

Loyal and True Campbell travels back to Stillwater to experience some of the traditions that helped make college so memorable.

“I love to see Homecoming Walkaround,” Campbell says. “The house decorations are always incredible, and it’s fun to attend with family and friends.”

Campbell and her father drove to Stillwater when she was home in Tulsa for Thanksgiving last fall just to split a plate of cheese fries from Eskimo Joe’s and walk around campus remembering her college years.

Staying Connected As a graduate student, Campbell presented a poster at the Institute of Food Technologists annual conference. At the event, she interviewed for a position at Coca Cola — and she was hired.

The IFT is a nonprofit scientific society with members who work in food science and technology. Its purpose is to advance the science of food. Campbell is active with her local IFT chapter and previously served as the organization’s treasurer.

Taste the Feeling Campbell has worked for Coca Cola for more than 10 years in product development in the North America Division. Campbell spent the last two years in the sparkling product department group, which focuses on carbonated beverages such as Dasani Sparkling, Fanta and Sprite.

“I love being a part of creating great products for people,” Campbell says. “The most rewarding part of my work is seeing someone choosing to buy a product I worked on and taking it home from the store to enjoy.”

Feet in the Water In her spare time, Campbell enjoys being outdoors hiking, boating and running.

“My husband and I both grew up spending time on the lakes in Oklahoma and have enjoyed keeping that pastime on the lakes in Georgia and North Carolina,” she says.

PHOTO / PHIL SHOCKLEY

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PHOTOS / TODD JOHNSON

Robert M. Kerr Food & Agricultural Products Center Director Roy Escoubas, right, visits with Rodger Kerr, son of Robert M. Kerr, and member of FAPC’s Industry Advisory Committee.

Celebrating the First 20 Years: Robert M. Kerr Food & Agricultural Products Center

O

BY M A N DY G R O S S

klahoma State University’s Robert M. Kerr Food & Agricultural Products Center is celebrating its first 20 years of adding value to Oklahoma.

Since 1997, FAPC has kept food and agricultural processors and entrepreneurs on the forefront of cutting-edge, value-added processing and technology. The center, part of OSU’s Division of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, has assisted more than 1,000 Oklahoma clients through 3,000 technical and business projects — an average of about 150 each year.

“FAPC was launched with a tremendous vision of helping value-added food and agricultural companies across the state, but no one had an idea of how it would actually flesh out,” says Roy Escoubas, FAPC director. The USDA defines value-added products as having a change in the physical form of the product, such as milling wheat into flour or making strawberries into jam.

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Twenty years later, the center is going strong. In fact, many of the faculty and staff hired in 1997 are still employed at FAPC today.

Jim Brooks, FAPC business and marketing services manager, and Tim Bowser, FAPC food process engineer, were the first two people hired January 2, 1997. Both say the past two decades have gone quickly.

“It has been my privilege to have been in the very first group of faculty and staff to be hired and begin the work for industry in our state,” Brooks says.

Bowser is excited for the future.

“I think the next 20, if I’m here to see any of them, will go quickly too,” Bowser says. “The center’s goals and its original intentions are long-lasting.”

Danielle Bellmer, FAPC food process engineer, also has been working for the center since June 1, 1997.

“It’s been a wonderful 20 years,” she says. “It’s been fun, it’s gone by fast, and I am really excited about our 20-year celebration. But I’m even more excited for what’s to come. I think we’re going to do many great things in the future.”

The center has celebrated the 20-year milestone with events, promotions and the help of industry sponsors, and the celebration will continue throughout 2017.

Kicking off 20 Years FAPC kicked off the 20-year anniversary with a reception during its 17th Annual Research Symposium in February. Sponsored by the Institute of Food Technologists — Oklahoma Section and the Oklahoma Association for Food Protection, the symposium highlighted food and agricultural products, student research from OSU, Langston University and the University of Central Oklahoma.

“Since opening our doors in January 1997, FAPC has provided valuable assistance to agricultural processors and entrepreneurs in value-added processing and technology with our research laboratories, pilot-processing facilities, educational programs and seminars,” Escoubas says. “There’s no better way to begin our 20-year anniversary celebration than during the research symposium, which encourages food industry research.”

Renee Nelson

Danielle Bellmer

Jim Brooks

FAPC MILLING AND BAKING SPECIALIST

FAPC FOOD PROCESS ENGINEER

FAPC BUSINESS AND MARKETING SERVICES MANAGER

BIOSYSTEMS AND AGRICULTURAL ENGINEERING PROFESSOR

Promoting Made in Oklahoma In March, FAPC and the Oklahoma Wheat Commission partnered with Oklahoma 4-H to promote Bake and Take Month with a contest promoting the 20-year anniversary. 4-H members across the state were encouraged to bake products made with locally grown wheat, use Made in Oklahoma products and decorate with a 20-year anniversary theme.

Renee Nelson, FAPC milling and baking specialist, says FAPC targeted 4-H clubs and members because they are strong in agriculture and community service.

“With 17 entries, the contest was not only a great way to learn more about products made with locally grown wheat and Made in Oklahoma ingredients, but it also helped FAPC celebrate its 20th anniversary of supporting the growth of valueadded food and agricultural products and processing in Oklahoma,” Nelson says.

In addition, FAPC celebrated Made in Oklahoma Month with a 20-year-anniversary booth at the College of Human Science’s Wine Forum of Oklahoma in April and during MIO Day, which was sponsored by University Dining Services and the Made in Oklahoma Coalition.

“Both events featured Made in Oklahoma companies in the food and beverage industry, which the center has helped,” Escoubas says. “Working side by side with Made in Oklahoma companies to support Made in Oklahoma Month and the grape and wine industry is a great way to celebrate 20 years of adding value to Oklahoma.”

Tim Bowser FAPC FOOD PROCESS ENGINEER BIOSYSTEMS AND AGRICULTURAL ENGINEERING PROFESSOR

Stimulating Food Innovation FAPC has helped stimulate and support food innovation through its entrepreneurial program.

To emphasize this program, FAPC, along with The Oklahoman and DASNR’s SunUp TV show, developed a documentary to celebrate FAPC’s 20-year milestone and make Oklahomans more aware of what the center has to offer. It premiered on OETA in May. The documentary, 20 Years of Made in Oklahoma Food Innovation, highlighted how FAPC started, the impact the

Suan Grant serves Suan’s Scotch Bonnet Pepper Jelly at a FAPC event.

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PHOTOS / TODD JOHNSON

Susan Witt’s Ace in the Bowl salsa turned into a successful business after she attended the FAPC basic entrepreneurial workshop.

The FAPC product development program helped Diane Mashore and her family launch Diane’s Signature Products with an heirloom dressing recipe.

Launching FAPC Connect

center has on Oklahoma and the food industry, and three Made in Oklahoma companies FAPC has assisted: Suan’s Foods, Ace in the Bowl Salsa and Diane’s Signature Products.

“It’s a little bit of a hidden secret here in the state of Oklahoma that people just don’t know about,” says Rodger Kerr, son of the center’s namesake. “It’s exciting to see the opportunities that we’re trying to help further my dad’s idea of helping businesses and industry grow in the state of Oklahoma.”

FAPC launched FAPC Connect, a free mobile app providing food safety and other food processing information.

Individuals can select topics of interest and get notified when new content is added; access articles, videos and trainings by FAPC topics or experts; and ask an expert about FAPC topics.

Donations from J-M Farms, Dvorak Farms, Unitherm Food Systems, Lopez Foods, Griffin Foods, Ralph’s Packing Co., deVine Water Co., Clements Foods Co. and Shawnee Milling Co. helped support the creation of the mobile app.

To view the documentary, visit fapc.biz/videos/documentary.

“The food industry understands the importance and necessity of having a mobile app that provides important information about food safety, processing and FAPC in general,” Escoubas says. “We would never have been able to develop and launch the app without the help of our industry sponsors.”

The free app is available for download from the App Store and Google Play. Visit fapcconnect.com for more information.

Sharing Creativity FAPC will hold one more event to help celebrate its 20-year anniversary, a Food & Beverage Product Development Competition on September 12.

FAP C on C Mob nect ile A Avail pp a

ble f or d f ro m own the A load p Goo p S to gle P re a n lay. d Visit fa pc con fo r m nec o re t.co infor m m at ion.

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PHOTO / MANDY GROSS

FAPC Director Roy Escoubas, left, visits with Chancellor Glen Johnson, chief executive officer for the Oklahoma State System of Higher Education, and OSU President Burns Hargis, right, on a tour.

Chuck Willoughby FAPC BUSINESS & MARKETING RELATIONS MANAGER PHOTOS / TODD JOHNSON

The contest will provide a venue for college students to share creative and innovative ideas for new food and beverage products with the food industry, says Chuck Willoughby, FAPC business and marketing relations manager.

“Thanks to several food industry sponsors, including deVine Water, Sonic, Griffin Foods, Fresh Avenue Partners and Head Country, FAPC was able to plan a new and innovative event to help wrap up

our 20-year celebration,” he says. “We’re looking forward to seeing the students’ creativity and product development abilities during the event.”

Moving Forward FAPC has successfully accomplished the objectives of its founding visionaries in its first 20 years, and the center continues to demonstrate academic excellence

through its projects, programs, training and education, Escoubas says.

“The food and agricultural industries have seen tremendous success during the last 20 years, thanks in large part to FAPC programs,” he says.

“We have had an amazing year celebrating our 20-year milestone. The future of FAPC is bright, and I truly believe the best is yet to come.”

Making History

FAPC published a historical book explaining how FAPC was established to help add value to Oklahoma’s economy — 1997-2017: A look into the first 20 years.

The goal of the publication was to lay the historical foundation of FAPC, Escoubas says.

“The creation, development and structure of FAPC are unique, and those with firsthand founding knowledge of these events are scarce,” he says. “FAPC is truly a one-of-a-kind, special model for economic development.”

Visit fapc.biz/publications/historical-book to view a copy of the book.

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Where STATE ly TradiTion

Meets ModernElegance

Lunch served Monday thru Friday, 11 a.m.–2 p.m.

Dinner served Tuesday thru Saturday, 5 p.m.–9 p.m.

Brunch served Saturday and Sunday, 11 a.m. – 2 p.m.

405-744-BEEF (2333) theRanchersClub.com 405-744-6835 AthertonHotelatOSU.com

PHOTOS / PHIL SHOCKLEY

A Taste of Stillwater Unique shops and eateries bring new life to town

BY H O L LY B E R G B O W E R

If you haven’t visited your alma mater lately, the campus surroundings may not look familiar.

Stillwater is growing and changing. Downtown is experiencing a revitalization with new shops, eateries and decidedly urban living spaces. New businesses are popping up, and local tastemakers are blazing a trail with the help of Oklahoma State University. The town is a destination of renewal and adventurous gastronomic delights focusing on local production and suppliers. Enjoy a taste of Stillwater here.

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FALL 2017

PHOTO / MARK WAITS

What began as a personal hobby is a booming business for Dave Monks and his partner Jerod Millirons. The two met as professors at Northern Oklahoma College in Stillwater and quickly became friends.

Alumnus Millirons earned a bachelor’s degree in biology in 2005 and master’s degree in business administration in 2007 from OSU. Before earning a doctoral degree in molecular biology from North Carolina State University and conducting research at the University of Washington Medical School in Seattle, Monks completed undergraduate research in plant pathology at OSU with Dr. Carol Bender during summers while earning his bachelor’s degree in cell biology at Northeastern State University in Tahlequah, Oklahoma.

Monks spent years perfecting his small batches of brews and introduced Millirons to the process in 2007.

Fast forward seven and a half years, and the two opened Iron Monk Brewing Company. Loads of research, tons of sweat equity and travel to other craft breweries went into the planning. Both owners had lived in Stillwater for more than a decade and felt a strong sense of community. One thing was certain: The brewery belonged in Stillwater.

T he duo gutted a building at Six th Ave nu e a nd Husband Street and turned it into a craf t brewery, creating every part of their operation, including a taproom and brewery area, with their own hands.

“We spent seven days a week here and uncountable hours turning a 14,000-square-foot office building into Stillwater’s first brewery,” Monks says.

“Luckily, the way we set it up seems to work.”

While the manual labor was exhausting, naming the brewery was even harder.

What was originally going to be called Stillwater Brewing Company evolved into a combination of their surnames based on Monks’ late-night epiphany.

Iron Monk Brewing was born.

Luckily for Monks and Millirons, fellow craft brewers believed that a rising tide lifts all boats and were happy to share what did and didn’t work in their world.

Once the building was completed and the brewing began, the taproom provided a perfect unofficial focus group setting for testing new brews. Stilly Wheat, the most popular Stillwater brew, took numerous formulations to get it just right. Thanks to taproom customers, a winner was developed.

Monks and Millirons promised each other early on to serve the state of Oklahoma well before branching out elsewhere. Two years ago, they took their first order — less than one full pallet of kegs. Today, their output is steadily increasing. Outside of Stillwater, Milk Stout is the go-to brew, while new selections are added constantly.

Clever can design is an integral part of the craft brewing world. Each brew requires a thread of consistency for brand recognition, but at the same time, Iron Monk is resistant to be put in a box. Marketing manager Mark Waits and graphic designer Dallas Tidwell created most of the images, but it’s an ongoing challenge to come up with something new and eye-catching.

“Believe it or not, can design creation and finalization is one of the most difficult parts of our jobs,” Monks says.

The task is such a challenge that they’ve taken it to the OSU Art Department. Each semester, art students vie for a chance to feature their design on a new

brew. The inaugural pitches resulted in three usable ideas that will all be featured on cans.

“We thought we’d maybe get a couple that were good, and it would be an easy decision,” Monks says. “What ended up happening was we got eleven fantastic ideas, so we’re using the top three. And we’re definitely going to do this each semester, if not more often.”

Iron Monk’s mantra is “local, local, local.” While hops can’t be grown locally due to the conditions, barley and wheat can.

Much of their grain is purchased from 46 Grain Company out of Ames, Oklahoma, while the popular Stilly Wheat exclusively uses Gallagher wheat, a variety created at Oklahoma State University.

Monks and Millirons hoped that Stillwater would welcome them with open arms. Monks says the community did and then some. Alumni come in during athletics events, students frequent the taproom, and Stillwater professionals stop in often. In return, Iron Monk gives back to the community by donating beer to events, brewery packages to auctions, and supporting local fire and police efforts. The brewery helps sponsor the Traditions Tailgate with the OSU Alumni Association.

What began with two brewing tanks has now increased to eight, lending the brewery more time and space to develop a variety of brews and lots of small-batch specials. Iron Monk is open Monday through Thursday from 4 to 10 p.m. and Friday and Saturday from 1 to 10 p.m. Brewery tours are available Saturdays at 2 and 4 p.m.

Jerod Millirons, left, and Dave Monks combined their last names to create Iron Monk. PHOTO / PHIL SHOCKLEY

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and special events can be booked in the dining room. Backstage, a downtown artistic venue opened by alumnus Russ Teubner, has also featured Ramsay in a chef series.

“We have unique food and offer a place to order food that is 90 percent made from scratch,” Ramsay says. “We offer fresh ingredients, homemade sauces and dressings, and ethnic dishes that bring something a little different to Stillwater.”

Ramsay’s first love, baking, has not been left out. She says baking is still her favorite thing to do in the kitchen, and weekly menus offer a wide array of desserts. Fridays are now known as pie days, and communal seating welcomes Stillwater residents and students to get to know one another. Ramsay’s goal is to serve lunch five days a week by following her tried-and-true formula of adding a little at a time.

“The dining really took off quickly, and I have to say I love serving people,” she says.

“It’s rewarding to see happy people enjoy a satisfying lunch.”

Ramsay also enjoys helping to revitalize downtown Stillwater. She has repainted her building and will install a new sign soon.

Most importantly, the Good Little Eater will continue to create unique menus.

Good Little Eater, 106½ West Tenth Avenue, is open Mondays from 3–6 p.m. for takeout meals; Wednesdays and Fridays from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. for lunch; and every other Sunday from 10:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. for brunch. Special orders are available by arrangement Monday through Friday. Find out more at goodlittleeater.net.

Good Little Eater Chef Sarah Ramsay

PHOTOS / PHIL SHOCKLEY

Chef Sarah Ramsay grew up as a daring eater and fledgling foodie. Nevertheless, she didn’t always think being praised for her eating prowess was necessarily a compliment.

“My dad always said, ‘Sarah, you’re such a good little eater!’” Ramsay says. “I would say, ‘Don’t call me that!’ but when it came time to name my restaurant, I thought, ‘Good Little Eater!’ It means someone who likes to eat healthy, loves food and is adventurous, so it worked.”

Ramsay’s father passed away in 1999.

The business name is a reminder of him and a tribute to the man who encouraged her love for food. Throughout her life, Ramsay has worked in the food industry, whether serving or baking. She attended the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York, from 1996 to 1998.

Marrying Chris Ramsay, an art professor at OSU, landed her in Stillwater. She began her business with an email list and a catering license. Ramsay sent out her weekly menus to the list and prepared meals for clients to pick up or took orders for special events. Attending the Riata Center for Entrepreneurship “Cowboy Boot Camp” proved to be invaluable with business advice for planning, marketing and accounting, Ramsay says.

After three years of catering (and twins old enough to be on their own more), it was time to expand the business. A kitchen became available for rent, and Good Little Eater found a new home. In 2016, Ramsay expanded the catering business to offer lunch twice a week and brunch most Sundays.

Catered meals are still available on Mondays,

Billy Goat Ice Cream Co-Founder RaShaun Robinson

PHOTOS / PHIL SHOCKLEY

OSU graduate RaShaun Robinson has had the idea of goat’s milk ice cream in his back pocket since the second semester of his freshman year. By the time he reached the Riata Center for Entrepreneurship for OSU’s Pitch and Poster competition, he and partner Caleb Neil had fleshed out the idea well.

They won that contest and drew the interest of the judges, who were more than happy to weigh in with advice on how to make goat’s milk ice cream a reality. What was once a fun idea morphed into real work.

Billy Goat Ice Cream launched April 10, 2015. The duo received a USDA grant for rural development and leaned very heavily upon OSU’s Robert M. Kerr Food and Agricultural Products Center.

“We pride ourselves on making our ice cream taste like the high-fat cow’s milk ice cream but with half the calories,” Robinson says.

The advantages of goat’s milk ice cream are abundant. It’s gluten-free, calcium rich, low-fat, low lactose with significantly more potassium, calcium, Vitamin A and protein than cow’s milk ice cream. Billy Goat ice cream is easier to digest than cow’s milk ice cream and contains twice the healthful medium-chain fatty acids. Perhaps most importantly, its ingredients are all locally sourced from a co-op of dairies in Atoka, Antlers and Newalla, Oklahoma.

Billy Goat Ice Cream currently operates out of Meridian Technology’s Business Incubator, after spending a good deal of time at FAPC. Production began with eight varieties: six core flavors and two special batches.

“We knew we had to make sure our vanilla was right,” Robinson says. “My dad told me over and over that if you don’t get the vanilla right, no other flavor matters.”

Billy Goat’s first sale was to Stillwater’s Hampton Inn and Suites on Hall of Fame Avenue. Next move was into local grocery stores and OSU. Eventually, the sweet treat moved into Crest Foods, Fresh Markets,

some Homelands, Reasor’s and Green Acres Market. In April 2017, Wal-Mart began carrying Billy Goat Ice Cream across the country. Sprouts Farmers Market started featuring the frozen treats this summer.

Growing a business wasn’t always as easy as Neil and Robinson might have thought.

Alumna Rhonda Hooper has served as a mentor and helped them avoid many newbusiness pitfalls.

“We really wanted to move faster than we were prepared,” Robinson says. “Rhonda was great about helping us set a pace and move forward at the right times.”

Billy Goat Ice Cream has its roots in Stillwater and desires to stay. The company is hoping to move into a new facility in the next few months.

“We want to contribute to the economy in Stillwater, and we want to offer something that’s not currently available,” Robinson says.

The new facility would feature an ice cream garden, which could offer special batches. As a testing center for new flavors, the shop would serve as a consumer “sounding board.” The remainder of the building would be a home for manufacturing Billy Goat Ice Cream.

“We really can’t imagine being anywhere else,” Robinson says. “How cool would it be for Billy Goat Ice Cream to be a destination to visit when you’re in Stillwater?”

Visit bgicecream.com for the new location and hours. Pick up your favorite flavor in your nearby grocery store.

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1907 was the year Oklahoma became a state. Not coincidentally, 1907 Meat Co. is championing the state with local products grown by Oklahoma farmers. Adam Gribben, the owner and operator of 1907 and a 2013 OSU electrical engineering technology graduate, prides himself on authenticity and transparency.

After three years of working as an engineer involving consistent travel, Gribben was ready to get back to Stillwater. He thoroughly investigated and debated what Stillwater needed. After reading The Ominvore’s Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals (Michael Pollan, 2006) and Salad Bar Beef (Joel Salatin, 1996), he began researching meat production and developed a business plan.

“Everyone who looked at my business plan said, ‘Don’t you mean you want to open in Oklahoma City or Tulsa?’”

Gribben says. “My answer was no. I believe Stillwater deserves something nice.”

As an engineer, Gribben had little experience with agriculture. What he did know was that Stillwater had a wealth of agricultural information at its fingertips with the state’s foremost agricultural school — OSU. He visited local farmers next.

“I asked myself, ‘What’s the most I can pay a farmer and still be viable?’”

Gribben says. “I really want to be of value to these farmers and to the state.”

What began with ordering, processing and selling one beef a month through a subscription system has progressed to four cattle and five pigs a week through the downtown Stillwater location. OSU’s Robert M. Kerr Food and Agricultural Products Center assists 1907 Meat with techniques for slaughtering and minimally processing cattle and pigs. Student employees at the FAPC slaughter the animals and the butcher at 1907 Meat breaks the product into steaks, ribs and various other cuts of meat. The company dry-ages beef in the FAPC cold storage facility, which enhances the flavor and quality of the meat.

“The FAPC has provided guidance for regulatory labeling and 1907 is now a state-inspected meat facility,” Gribben says.

“Because of our proximity to the university, we enjoy a level of access that really helps us tackle problems as they occur.”

1907’s doors opened at 919 South Main Street on October 11, 2016, as Stillwater’s only butcher shop downtown in a space that originally operated as a grocery store. The store employs 15 workers including two full-time butchers, three apprentice butchers and Executive Chef Matt Buechele, who plans the weekly menu, which changes frequently.

The shop is open Tuesday through Friday from 8-10:30 a.m. for breakfast and 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. for lunch.

Weekends, 1907 is open for brunch from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. and keeps its butcher counter open until 6 p.m. on Saturday and 2:30 p.m. on Sunday. The butcher shop offers everything from bacon to T-bone steaks and recently added farm-fresh eggs, baked goods and local cheeses.

PHOTO / TYLER SIEMS

PHOTO / PHIL SHOCKLEY

Hog farmer Steve Kirkpatrick is a butcher at 1907 Meat Co. PHOTO / PHIL SHOCKLEY

PHOTOS / PHIL SHOCKLEY

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1907 Meat Co. owner Adam Gribbin and staff

RECIPE

Expanding Culinary Horizons Coconut Curry Chicken Sausage Tacos

BY S A L LY A S H E R

Ingredients: • 1 pound coconut curry chicken sausage from 1907 Meat Co. in bulk or links • 6 pieces of naan or 8 to 10 flour tortillas • 1 cup milk or half-and-half • 2 tablespoons butter • 2 tablespoons flour • 2 tablespoons curry powder • 1 teaspoon garlic powder • 1 teaspoon paprika • 1/2 teaspoon salt • 1 to 2 cups cooked rice • Sriracha or hot sauce for an extra spicy kick • Fresh cilantro (optional)

PHOTO / SALLY ASHER

Chicken. Curry. Tacos.

They're each wonderful things, but putting them together creates a superpredator of deliciousness.

1907 Meat Co. debuted the Coconut Curry Chicken Sausage in the meat case — and I was skeptical, because my experiences with curry didn't include anything even remotely resembling sausage, but I was willing to give it a shot because I like curry and chicken together, so why not expand my culinary horizons?

I took home a few and cooked them up with some rice and a curry cream sauce (white sauce with curry powder, garlic powder, paprika and salt). It was fantastic! The perfect marriage of curry flavor with the chicken and just enough spice to make it interesting — we liked it so much we decided to do it again, but the sausages were sold out by the time I went back for

round two. The butcher had some of the coconut curry chicken sausage in bulk (not linked), so we went for a taco theme.

I added some fresh cilantro as a garnish, and instead of flour tortillas, we took it another international step further and used naan, a traditional flatbread in Central and South Asia. The naan did make it more filling, and I ended up eating only one taco.

I like to make the curry cream sauce first and then heat it up when it's time to eat.

I found the best way to eat this is to fold it like a New York City slice of pizza and go to town on it. There's no civilized way to eat a taco.

(Read OSU alumna Sally Asher’s food blog with products from 1907 Meat online at 1907meat.co/in-your-kitchen.)

Directions: Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat and whisk in flour until it’s pasty. Whisk in milk or half-and half, stirring constantly until it begins to thicken. If it’s too thick for your liking, add more milk.

Reduce heat to low and whisk in curry powder, garlic powder, paprika and salt. Stir well to combine and add more spice to taste. Cover and set aside.

Brown the sausage in a skillet, breaking up big chunks until they’re all a uniform size (like you do with regular taco meat).

While the sausage is browning, heat the naan or tortillas in the oven or on a skillet.

Build the taco. Place 1/4 to 1/3 cup of rice on the naan or tortillas.

Add sausage and drizzle with the curry cream sauce. Top with cilantro and hot sauce for an extra spicy kick!

PHOTO / PHIL SHOCKLEY

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PHOTO / PHIL SHOCKLEY

BACKSTAGE: REIMAGINING STILLWATER CULTURE

BY S H E L BY H O LC O M B

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Backstage opened in 2015 as an elegant hospitality venue.

“I liked the idea of creating something hidden and special, with a speakeasy feel to it,” says Russ Teubner, co-founder and CEO of HostBridge TEchnology and owner of Backstage. “I do it because I want to create things that add beauty to our community.

Obviously, one dimension of ‘beauty’ is adding to the cultural and aesthetic landscape of Stillwater. That motivates me.”

At first, the space was only available for private events. Teubner wasn’t satisfied with that and wanted to offer more — his vision was live music, a dinner series featuring regional chefs and other events. Thus, Backstage went public.

Currently, it hosts 60-70 public and private events a year (and the public events sell out fast).

Situated on a quiet block in historic downtown Stillwater, in a building Teubner acquired in the early ’90s to house his first company, Teubner & Associates, Backstage has taken on the air of a discreet and modern marvel, mixing early 20th-century pieces with iconic mid-century modern representations, offering a unique experience for all.

The Experience Where do you go to host a private event for special guests? Where can you make a really wonderful first impression? These were questions Teubner pondered as he flirted with the idea of Backstage — a project he initially referred to as his “hobby.”

“I jokingly call it a hobby … my wife might call it an obsession,” he says.

Julie and Russ Teubner have been longtime supporters of the OSU Chef Series, which happens four times a year and offers limited seating. The Teubners decided to take that concept and make it more frequent and accessible.

“Whereas the OSU Chef Series features nationally prominent chefs, we wanted to showcase local and regional chefs,” he says.

“There’s a strong appetite for additional food and beverage events in Stillwater, and there are a number of great chefs within 50 miles of Stillwater, wandering around Payne County. So, our formula is very simple: We invite a chef to design the menu, set the price and even do wine pairings if they wish.

Backstage becomes the space in which they do their magic. And we’ve had some really magical dinners!”

For example, consider Robert Raab, whose day job is assistant director of OSU’s First Year Success Office.

“I don’t know if Robert is formally trained or not, and frankly I don’t care; he’s really talented,” Teubner says.

For some time now, local chefs such as Sarah Ramsay (owner of downtown’s Good Little Eater), Jeff Denton (owner of TS Fork in Tonkawa, Oklahoma), Ben Coffin (of Guthrie, Oklahoma’s Granny Had One) and Raab have delighted Backstage patrons with their menus, themes and prices.

“I think it’s such a unique space for Stillwater,” says Ramsay, who was the guinea pig at the premiere dinner in 2015. “There’s absolutely nothing like it. He has all this amazing artwork, and it’s just a beautiful setting.”

From wine and food pairings to buffets, French-style cuisine to barbeque, the options and experiences are limitless, thanks to the versatility of the venue itself.

“What he brings to Stillwater is really cool because even though the town is primarily about the university and its students, this is an opportunity for adults to

Chef Jeff Denton graduated with a bachelor’s degree from OSU’s School of Hotel and Restaurant Administration in 1982. engage in the community as well,” says Raab, whose niche is wine and food pairings. “So, for someone like myself, this is great. It’s a hobby. It’s a craft. You get to do that, and do it in an area that you know is among the community.”

The intimate gathering space allows patrons to hear, smell and see the food as it’s being prepared. Chefs educate diners both formally and in casual conversations.

The Aesthetics “The vision was to create a space that was comparable, in terms of art, architecture and interior design, to any top-notch hospitality venue in the U.S. Since my customers in the software business are outside of Oklahoma or somewhere around the world, I’ve seen a lot of great spaces over the last 30 years. And that’s what guided me in creating Backstage,” Teubner says.

“I also wanted to create a space that reflected our history.”

Originally the Aggie Theater, the venue is a bit of an anachronism — a feeling well illustrated by its main event area, where restored red brick walls dating back to the early 1900s are lined with a series of original Andy Warhol screenprints.

PHOTO / PHIL SHOCKLEY

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PHOTO / DAVID COBB

“Everything I create tends to become an exercise in ‘integration,’” Teubner says. “The idea is to bring things together that are old and new, creating a juxtaposition between them that causes someone to go, ‘Oh, wow. I like that.’”

Teubner’s passion for projects like Backstage, as well as his newest one across the street, directly relates to his day job.

“Our specialty is building software that helps large organizations tie together older and newer technology,” he says. “One of the really fun things about this project is that it’s a tangible expression of what we do in the software world. We are architects who bring together things that are existing and things

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that are emerging and make them work together in new, useful and delightful ways.”

The five featured Warhols, belonging to a collection titled “Cowboys and Indians,” define the color palette with a vibrant, modern mood. They also bring a sense of humanity and Oklahoma history to the space.

“Geronimo died here, Annie Oakley performed here, [George Armstrong] Custer fought here, the Trail of Tears ended here, and Teddy Roosevelt signed the state into existence.”

Visitors can find other unique works sprinkled throughout the venue, even a

couple Teubner created himself. For example, the Backstage wine room was once filled with computer equipment and servers.

“The question was: ‘What can you do with a room that has five tons of air conditioning and fire suppression?’” Teubner says.

“Well, that’s wine storage, right!? But then, do we get rid of the server cabinets? Well, of course not. You use what’s there; you honor what the space has been. So, I re-engineered my old Dell server cabinets to be wine storage racks. The Backstage project was all about attention to detail, but that’s the kind of stuff I enjoy.”

PHOTO / PHIL SHOCKLEY

An Oklahoma State University alumnus, Teubner graduated from the College of Business in 1978 with a bachelor’s degree in management science and computer systems.

“When I came to OSU, I didn’t know if I wanted to be an architect, an engineer or something they were calling a ‘computer scientist,’” he says. “I think my father was worried that I would be on the five- or six-year plan, so he said, ‘Well, why don’t you major in business, and find ways to be involved in the other things along the way?’

And that’s what I did.

“Having been in the software business all of my life, I’m now circling back to create design-oriented projects in the community that add to the aesthetic landscape.”

It was actually because of OSU that Teubner decided to make Backstage a reality.

“Right about that time, OSU President Hargis made the commitment to put the OSU Art Museum downtown — that was a bold and visionary step,” he says. “And so I thought, ‘If he’s willing to do that, then I’m

willing to create something that complements OSU’s efforts.’”

Teubner’s passion for collecting art and architectural antiques led him to think he’d collected enough pieces to have a running start at creating an amazing venue.

“Frankly, my hope is that the community can just keep up with OSU,” Teubner says. “The emphasis Burns and Ann have placed on the arts has been transformational.

And, while OSU can lead the way, it can’t do it alone. An emphasis on the arts on campus will be incomplete without a corresponding emphasis within in the community.

“We need community resources that complement campus resources so that when people visit Stillwater (perhaps to attend an event at the McKnight Center) they’ll get it — that Stillwater is a wonderful city that really cares about building a community around the arts. That’s one reason why I’ve been collaborating with others regarding future plans for downtown Stillwater. It’s time for those of us in the community to up our game — starting with a transformational project downtown.”

Teubner believes there needs to be a “symbiotic relationship” between OSU and downtown. And the sense of urgency he and others feel is a testament to just how good a job OSU has done.

“For as long as I’m able, I want to invest time, energy and resources in projects that reinforce downtown Stillwater as the social, cultural and artistic hub of the community.

And while it may seem odd for a software engineer and entrepreneur to focus on a word like ‘beauty,’ it’s one I’ve started using more and more. The more my life has revolved around technology and productivity, the more I need beauty — in all its forms — to keep me balanced.”

For more information about Backstage and to make reservations for upcoming events, visit backstagestillwater.com.

Russ Teubner is co-founder and CEO of Hostbridge Technology LLC, chairman of the board of Southwest Bancorp, the parent company of BankSNB, owner of Backstage, a local event venue, and an all-around entrepreneur.

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PHOTO / ALLISON RANEY

OSU brings beverage education to the public through the Wine Forum of Oklahoma and the Wayne Hirst Center for Beverage Education

The 2017 Wine Forum of Oklahoma was held in the new north wing of the College of Human Sciences.

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W

ith words like cuvée, bourdeaux and chateau montelena echoing in the crowd, you feel like you are in the south of France instead of Stillwater, Oklahoma. But Oklahoma State University’s College of Human Sciences new north wing was transformed into a showcase for wines, champagnes and delicious cuisine during the fifth biennial Wine Forum of Oklahoma.

The School of Hotel and Restaurant Administration’s student-led event provides hands-on experience in event planning and management courses, along with offering oenophiles and neophytes a chance to extend their wine knowledge.

“The School of Hotel and Restaurant Administration is proud to host this exciting event as part of our continuous efforts to be leaders in hospitality education,” says Ben Goh, assistant dean and school director.

“The 2017 Wine Forum of Oklahoma was truly groundbreaking. It was the first time the Gala Dinner and Auction, seminars and Grand Tasting were held in one location, the new north wing of the College of Human Sciences.”

For two years, six student committees — vintner, events, hospitality, ambassador, culinary and marketing — planned, designed, created and orchestrated one of OSU’s signature events.

More than 120 students from a variety of majors at OSU executed the meticulous plans during a two-day event with a Gala Dinner and Auction, 12 seminars and four luncheons, culminating with a Grand Tasting.

Karen Fraser, event coordinator for the Wine Forum of Oklahoma, knows the unique opportunities for OSU students are priceless.

“They get to work with world-class vintners and plan an event, which is exactly what a lot of them will be doing in their careers,” Fraser says. “It is a great learning experience for them.”

Amber Leonard, a senior in hotel and restaurant administration, served as the 2017 Wine Forum marketing co-chair.

PHOTO / PHIL SHOCKLEY

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A team of 128 students planned the 2017 Wine Forum of Oklahoma.

The Wine Forum allows guests to sample wines while learning about the differences.

PHOTOS / PHIL SHOCKLEY

“Through the planning process, our students came up with a theme and the décor, worked closely with industry partners to develop menus and wine pairings, rebranded the event, developed registration and patron logistics plans, and planned and executed both live and silent auctions,” Leonard says. “The Wine Forum has so many moving parts that everything must be cohesive and all 128 students need to work as a team to communicate efficiently and effectively.”

KR Rombauer of Rombauer Vineyards served as honorary chair for this year’s event. He says his number one reason for wanting to be involved is the students.

“I could not be more proud of what they have accomplished,” Rombauer says.

“This is such a special event — from the food to the wine and education to the experience — it is truly one of a kind.”

Another reason for Rombauer’s enthusiasm was his close relationship with Wayne Hirst, a leader in the Oklahoma beverage industry. Hirst, who died in 2015, was an early supporter of the Wine Forum.

So it was fitting that the Wayne Hirst Center for Beverage Education was officially opened during the 2017 event. As one of HRAD’s new teaching labs, the Center for Beverage Education is stateof-the-art with cutting-edge technology, including temperature-controlled systems for the 1,000-bottle wine cellar.

The focus of the center is to provide an integrated and collaborative curriculum, which explores the trends of beverages around the world. From tea and coffee to wines and beer, the center will focus on educational and engaging programs that include all types of beverages.

Offering credit or non-credit courses for all student levels, the center fulfills Hirst’s goal of educating the public on beverages of every kind.

“He was a very gregarious individual and generous-hearted,” says Philippe Garmy, who retired in June after serving 10 years as clinical beverage instructor and center director. “Wayne helped educate a whole generation of people regarding beverages. He was in many ways a kind of paradigm pioneer.

“The students are the benefactors of this center. And not just hotel and restaurant administration students but students

A wide array of dishes were served at the Grand Tasting by 12 regional chefs.

PHOTO / ALLISON RANEY

At the Wine Forum Gala Dinner, College of Human Sciences Dean Stephan Wilson, right, recognized Marilynn Thoma with induction into the College’s Hall of Fame.

Carl Thoma, left, was named an honorary alumnus.

PHOTO / LYN PUTNAM

from a lot of different majors and areas.

We want to give students a depth and breadth of experience and knowledge.”

More than 300 patrons and guests experienced a taste of France’s Provence region during the Gala Dinner and Auction on Friday evening, the first day of the event. Beautiful floral arrangements of lavender, sunflowers and herbs transformed the Great Hall into a delightful French tableau. Guest Chef Philippe Garmy’s menu completed the transformation.

During the gala, Marilynn and Carl Thoma were honored for their vision and service to the College of Human Sciences.

Marilynn, who is a 1971 graduate, was inducted into the College’s Hall of Fame, and Carl was named an honorary alumnus. The couple, who own VanDuzer Vineyards, provided leadership and seed funding to establish the Wine Forum of Oklahoma. They also endowed the Marilynn Thoma Chair in the College of Human Sciences.

College of Human Sciences Dean Stephan Wilson, who presented the awards to the couple, says they have established a lasting legacy for generations.

“From the Marilynn Thoma Chair and the Wine Forum of Oklahoma, Marilynn and Carl’s vision has already made a difference in the lives of students, faculty and the community,” Wilson says. “They have indeed brought distinction and honor to the college and the university.”

A silent auction preceded the gala and auctioneer Karen Sorbo choreographed a lively evening of fundraising to benefit the school’s endowment for student programming and scholarships.

While Friday evening was a stunning success, Saturday’s schedule was designed to provide educational experiences for everyone. Twelve seminars during the day featured Master of Wine and Master Sommelier Doug Frost; Brian Connors, a Certified Bordeaux Wine Educator; the “Cheese Wench” Amanda Simcoe and KR Rombauer. Blind tastings, pairings, champagne and beer comparisons and the future of wine extended the list of educational offerings. Four vintner- and brewmaster-led luncheons provided guests with more culinary experiences.

Philippe Garmy, back center, and students Paige Smith, left, and Lindy Leigh Singleton, right, welcome Sara Woldegerima, founder of YA Coffee Roasters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. She discussed the history and culture of coffee native to Ethiopia and shared information about her business efforts as a female entrepreneur in Africa.

The final event of the Wine Forum of Oklahoma — the Grand Tasting — featured 28 wineries and 12 regional chefs on Saturday night.

The grandeur of the food and wine was tangible as wine connoisseurs and novices alike traveled from table to table to sample the different delicacies. This grand event encompasses what this industry is all about — camaraderie, education, and, of course, great wine.

Seeing the Grand Tasting come together is a reward for students who have dedicated two years to planning it.

“I’m sure I can speak for the student executive team when I say that it was not always easy, but at the end of the day, it was 100 percent worth it when we were able to see our six committees come together and work to create a truly unique and unforgettable experience for all of our guests,” Leonard says.

Wine Forum of Oklahoma is one of those rare events that successfully combines education, fundraising and friend raising.

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Cowboy Caravan OSU coaches and alumni staff crisscrossed Oklahoma, Arkansas and Kansas this summer for the annual Cowboy Caravan events. Stops were made in cities throughout Oklahoma, including Ponca City, Woodward, Enid, McAlester, Altus, Tulsa and Oklahoma City, and Northwest Arkansas and Wichita, Kansas.

More than 2,000 fans greeted coaches Mike Gundy and Mike Boynton. Voice of the Cowboys Larry Reece served as the host at each event. Fans snapped photos with Pistol Pete and OSU Pom Squad members.

Several chapters hosted silent auctions, face painting and autograph signings while serving up great home-cooked food. In McAlester, Oklahoma, the Pittsburg County Chapter included a senior sendoff, offering free attendance at the Cowboy Caravan to all incoming OSU freshmen.

“We love it when representatives from OSU come to McAlester,” says Janai Miller, chapter president. “We have a large amount of alumni in this area, and it gives us all a chance to visit.”

The Jackson/Harmon Counties Chapter in Altus, Oklahoma, awarded 11 $1,000 scholarships to local students attending OSU this fall at its Cowboy Caravan.

“When the coaches take time to travel to Altus, it makes our small community feel important,” says Jennie McLeod, chapter president. “It gives us all a connection to them.”

The final events in Tulsa and Oklahoma City included performances by the Cowboy Marching Band. Both chapters held a coaches panel while guests enjoyed hors d’oeuvres. Attendees received custom Pistol Pete cup holders to take home in remembrance of the event.

Painting Pete Night Six OSU Alumni Association chapters participated in the inaugural Paint Pete Night on Thursday, May 11.

More than 200 alumni painted our favorite mascot Pistol Pete at chapter events in Oklahoma in Stillwater, Tulsa and Oklahoma City, as well as in Houston, Dallas and Fayetteville, Arkansas.

Each participant had the same canvas shape but added their own special touches to each piece.

Julie Simon, ’07 journalism and broadcasting, and Arlene Manthey, ’78 elementary eduction, display their finished Pete painting in North Texas.

OSU wrestling head coach John Smith, left, greeted fans at the Northwest Arkansas Caravan.

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More than 70 Cowboys painted Pete at the Painted Lyon in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma.

Cowboys for a Cause More than 100 chapter members participated in this year’s Cowboys for a Cause across the country. From backpack stuffing to flower planting, members gave back to their communities by volunteering at local charities.

The Pittsburg County Chapter participated in their local charity Shared Blessing’s Backpack program by stuffing backpacks for students in need.

“I think our younger legacies enjoyed it more than adults,” says Chapter President Janai Miller. “They usually don’t have a chance to get to do something that benefits so many others.”

In Oklahoma City, the Chesapeake Energy Corporate Chapter joined forces with the Cavett Kids Foundation to serve children with life-threatening and chronic illnesses.

“As volunteers serving the community through various means, it is important to take a step back and help others to not only help them succeed, but to see how else we can improve the community around us,” says Chesapeake Chapter President Jon Nobles.

The Orange County Chapter members participated in two CFAC events this year. Members volunteered at The Second Harvest Food Bank and prepared more than 350 crates of vegetables for distribution to local communities. At the second event, members assembled personal hygiene kits for local homeless shelters. Additional items such as cases of water and protein bars were also purchased.

Other chapters that participated in this year’s CFAC events included Devon Energy, Houston, Southeast Idaho and Tulsa.

Houston Chapter members helped repair bicycles with Chain Reaction Ministries.

Chesapeake Energy Chapter members volunteered at Oklahoma City’s Cavett Kids Foundation.

Cowboys in Idaho Falls participated in their city’s Adopt-a-Flowerbed community beautification project.

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Upcoming Alumni Events Join an Oklahoma State University Alumni Association Chapter near you to celebrate OSU and connect with Cowboys. For the most current events listing, visit orangeconnection.org/chapters.

OSU alumni show their “Pistols Firing” at OSU Night with the Kansas City Royals.

Take Me Out to the Ballgame Fans wearing America’s Brightest Orange® took in America’s favorite pastime with several OSU Alumni Association chapters this summer.

In Kansas City, chapter members attended a Royals baseball game against the New York Yankees on May 18.

Twenty members of the Orange County Chapter enjoyed OSU Night with the Anaheim Angels on June 30. Members fit in perfectly during the “Patriotic Cowboy Hat Night” and were recognized with a special welcome on the scoreboard.

The Houston Chapter spent an evening at Minute Maid Park watching the Houston Astros play the Minnesota Twins on July 14. Members ended their night viewing a Texas-sized fireworks show.

— Alumni Chapter News Compiled By Leanna Smith

August 14

Tulsa Cowboy Caravan Tulsa Chapter

August 17

OKC Cowboy Caravan OKC Metro Chapter

August 17

Thirsty Thursday Happy Hour North Texas Chapter

August 31

Tulsa vs. OSU Watch Parties

September 8

OSU @ South Alabama Watch Parties South Alabama Cowboy Corral Mobile, Alabama

September 15-17 OSU @ Pittsburgh Football Trip Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania September 16

OSU @ Pittsburgh Watch Parties

September 16

Park City Polo Challenge Park City, Kansas

September 21

OSU Faculty & Staff Chapter Luncheon Stillwater, Oklahoma

September 23

TCU vs. OSU Watch Parties

September 29

Friday with the Family Lubbock, Texas

September 30

OSU @ Texas Tech Watch Parties Texas Tech Cowboy Corral Lubbock, Texas

October 1

Pistol Pete’s Birthday Oklahoma City Zoo OKC Metro Chapter

Pistol Pete’s Birthday Tulsa Zoo Tulsa Chapter

October 14

Baylor vs. OSU Watch Parties

October 20

Friday with the Family Austin, Texas

October 21

OSU @ Texas Watch Parties Texas Cowboy Corral Austin, Texas

October 27

Friday with the Family Morgantown, West Virginia

October 28

OSU @ West Virginia Watch Parties West Virginia Cowboy Corral Morgantown, West Virginia

November 4

Oklahoma vs. OSU Watch Parties

November 10

Friday with the Family Ames, Iowa

November 11

OSU @ Iowa State Watch Parties Iowa State Cowboy Corral Ames, Iowa

November 18

Kansas State vs. OSU Watch Parties

November 20-21 Cowboy Basketball Legends Classic Barclays Center Brooklyn, New York

The Orange County Alumni Chapter in California attended OSU Night with the Anaheim Angels including, from left, Tom Britton, Pam Myers and Albert Serrano-Brothers.

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November 25

Kansas vs. OSU Watch Parties

CHAPTER LEADER PROFILE:

Mike Woods Mike Woods loves Oklahoma State University not only because he was educated here, but because he gets to be an educator here. This alumnus serves as the department head of agricultural economics, the same place where he earned his doctoral degree in 1981. Woods is the OSU Faculty and Staff Alumni Chapter president and has been a part of this chapter since its inception in 2014.

He is a proud life member of the OSU Alumni Association and being a part of this organization has given him an opportunity to be involved and exercise his passion for the university. He got his start working for OSU by doing extension and research all over the state of Oklahoma, helping rural communities diversify their local economies. After doing research, Woods wanted to take a different career path by teaching and working with students and he was able to begin teaching at OSU, a job he truly loves.

“I have always tried to be involved in all things Oklahoma State,” Woods says.

“My family and I certainly bleed orange.”

Woods has two sons who graduated from OSU and his family is able to share in the Cowboy pride that he has treasured for many years. Sons Jason M. Woods earned a bachelor’s degree in newseditorial journalism and geography in May 2004 and Nathan M. Woods earned a bachelor’s degree in marketing and management in July 2016.

The Faculty and Staff Alumni Chapter began to take shape in 2014. During the first meeting for the chapter, Woods saw a great opportunity to be involved and give back to both the university and the OSU Alumni Association. He enthusiastically joined as a founding member. Woods became chapter president a year ago.

OSU ALUMNI FACULTY AND STAFF CHAPTER

BY THE NUMBERS

4,045 OSU Alumni faculty or staff

798 members

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Mike Woods, right, wears America’s Brightest Orange® with his family, sons Nathan, left, and Jason, and wife Mary.

Woods’ favorite activity that his chapter facilitates is the luncheons for faculty and staff members. He says that it is a great opportunity to meet fellow faculty and staff members that you never would have come in contact with otherwise.

“You get a chance to meet people across campus and it has been a lot of fun to interact with people that you normally wouldn’t meet,” Woods says.

The Faculty and Staff Alumni Chapter had an exciting event at Lost Creek Safari in the summer. Members brought their families out for a fun day exploring, learning more, and petting different animals.

About 100 people attended the chapter event.

Woods is proud to represent the faculty and staff as he serves as president of the OSU Alumni Association chapter.

He also enjoys squeezing in a round of golf when he has the time to relax and unwind.

Since his sons have graduated and started their own lives, Woods and his wife have taken up traveling together.

“You get a chance to meet people across campus and it has been a lot of fun to interact with people that you normally wouldn’t meet.”

— Mike Woods AG R I C U LT U R A L E C O N O M I C S D E PA R T M E N T H E A D A N D PROFES SOR O S U FAC U LT Y A N D S TA F F A L U M N I CHAPTER PRESIDENT

PHOTO / PHIL SHOCKLEY

Tony LoPresto, left, and Kent Gardner met in 2000 on the Homecoming Executive Team. Today, they’re helping to lead the OSU Alumni Association.

Connections for Life

BY C H A S E CA R T E R

The friendship of Oklahoma State University alumni Kent Gardner and Tony LoPresto has come full circle since they met as students on the 2000 Homecoming Executive Team. Today, they’re proudly serving the Cowboy family once again as board chairman and vice chairman for the OSU Alumni Association.

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s a college student, you never know when the next person you meet is going to turn into a life-long connection. Everyone’s so busy attending classes and other activities that it can be difficult to forge lasting relationships with many others on campus.

The same was the case for OSU alumni Kent Gardner and Tony LoPresto.

Both life members from the Class of 2001, their paths didn’t cross until their senior year.

“Being the last of five kids to go to OSU, everyone said I needed to get involved in activities, and none of my siblings had worked on Homecoming,”

Gardner says. “I got involved with the Student Alumni Board and then on the Homecoming Executive Team for Walkaround.”

Gardner grew up in the small town of Sharon, Oklahoma — a very different environment from where LoPresto hails.

“I’ve only lived two places — Oklahoma City and Stillwater,” LoPresto says. “We grew up OSU fans only. Before I was in grade school, I remember being the only OSU kid in my day care. But it was really the only place I applied to go to school.”

LoPresto’s entrance onto the Homecoming Executive Team was different from most others. When the residential life executive had to drop out, LoPresto decided to apply. After all, he had lived in Bennett Hall for four years and been the hall’s treasurer and president.

“I had to interview with the other executives I was going to serve with that year and the adviser, Anne Scott,” LoPresto says. “That’s how I met Kent.”

As Walkaround and Residential Life executives, Kent and Tony’s friendship grew along with their love for OSU’s greatest tradition.

“The amount of work that goes into putting Homecoming on is fascinating,” Gardner says. “The dedication from the students who have everything else going on and are willing to commit the time just shows how loyal they are.”

For LoPresto, Homecoming opened his eyes to how projects and events of this magnitude were coordinated and the time that’s required to execute them.

The theme of Homecoming 2000 was ‘In Pursuit of Legends’ recognizing people who had made significant contributions to OSU. “I remember what a great personality Kent had,” Scott says. “When he spoke, everyone listened. I’m not one bit surprised to see him once again in a leadership position in support of Oklahoma State.

“Tony was one of the first if not the first representative for the Residence Halls, and he did so much to help engage that student population in Homecoming,” Scott says. “He brought great ideas to the group and implemented them, including

Kent Gardner, back left, and Tony LoPresto, back center, join the other Homecoming 2000 executives on the football field during the halftime ceremony.

the popular Chili Cook-Off we have today. His leadership really changed the dynamic.”

Gardner and LoPresto graduated that next spring and both found jobs in Oklahoma City. The knowledge and skills they gained at OSU have been pivotal for their careers. Gardner is vice president and general counsel at Funk Companies while LoPresto is director of finance at Love’s Travel Stops & Country Stores.

Gardner says after moving to Oklahoma City, the two would occasionally see each other at lunch and chat, but it was the OSU Alumni Association that ultimately brought them back together.

Both men served on the Leadership Council before being named to the Board of Directors. This spring, Gardner began a two-year term as board chairman with LoPresto stepping into the role of vice chairman. In 2019, LoPresto will take over leading the organization.

“To have that history together and that trust you have knowing someone is pulling their weight is invaluable,” Gardner says of their friendship. “You never lose that.”

“Kent’s and my leadership skills are a lot alike,” LoPresto says. “We’re not the two loudest guys in the room. We sit back, listen and then provide feedback once we’ve heard all the facts.”

Both say their intentions are to focus on the sustainability and inclusivity of the OSU Alumni Association.

“My goal is to make sure we’re financially sound, prudent with the money we do have, and provide an environment for the staff to continue to grow the Alumni Association,” Gardner says.

“We want to make sure the Alumni Association is very inclusive of everyone

who’s associated with OSU,” LoPresto adds. “We want to grow our membership and also our programs that serve anyone who went to OSU.” OSU Alumni Association President Chris Batchelder says both men personify the spirit of what it means to be an OSU Cowboy.

“They began serving their alma mater together as student leaders and are guiding the future of the Alumni Association together as graduates,” Batchelder says.

“I am grateful to call both of them my friend.”

After 17 years of friendship, both Gardner and LoPresto believe it’s important to focus on the contacts we make at OSU and feel the Alumni Association is one way to continue.

“It’s important people stay connected because it’s easy to get disconnected,” Gardner says. “We must help people foster that sense of family and loyalty and continue to live it like they once felt it in college.”

“The Alumni Association has been a big contributing factor to why I love OSU so much,” LoPresto says. “Kent is just one of the many people I’ve met through my various kinds of service with the Alumni Association. “‘Connections for Life’ couldn’t be any more accurate.”

Homecoming Adviser Anne Scott, right, visited with Tony LoPresto, left, and Kent Gardner at Homecoming 2000.

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OSU’s Proud & Immortal Society inducts 53 new members at biennial event

BY JAC O B L O N G A N

S

ome of Oklahoma State University’s most generous donors were honored March 31 at the second biennial Proud & Immortal Society dinner inside the Student Union. President Burns Hargis thanked and congratulated the group’s 53 new inductees, who have each cumulatively given $1 million or more to OSU. “You have set the bar high for others and challenge us to work harder and dream bigger,” Hargis told the audience.

“The growth of this prestigious group is further proof of the historic commitment of our donors, alumni and friends.”

The names of the 333 individuals, companies and foundations inducted over the past two years are displayed on a donor wall in the lobby of the Student Union Theater on the second floor.

The 53 new inductees have given a combined $82 million to OSU, and gifts from the entire Proud & Immortal Society have totaled $1.82 billion, which:

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• Increase the quality and accessibility of higher education for all students through scholarship funds.

• Enhance teaching, research and professional development for professors, administrators and staff through faculty funds.

• Support the construction, renovation and maintenance of state-of-theart spaces for teaching and research through facility funds.

“The individuals and organizations who make up the Proud & Immortal Society have had a transformational impact on Oklahoma State University,” says Kirk Jewell, president of the OSU Foundation. “Inductees will forever be recognized alongside the most celebrated figures in our university’s history.”

David Peters, head of OSU’s Archives department at the Edmon Low Library, reflects on how donors have made an

1890 In the university’s first 110 years, 50

families & organizations reached the

$1 million milestone.

donors have given

2000 Since 2000,

President Burns Hargis presented rosettes to the newest Proud & Immortal Society inductees, including Richard Cochran (above) and NORDAM (below), represented

by Bailey J. Siegfried and his wife, Kellner.

more donors have reached that level of giving.

PHOTOS / CHRIS LEWIS

to OSU

For more information, visit OSUgiving.com/proudandimmortal

increasing impact at the university from its and communities. “Cowboys help other opportunities and tools that benefit 1890 founding through today.

Cowboys by giving what we can,” faculty and students alike.

“The level of giving now has made Cochran says.

“This recognition belongs to the men a dramatic change in both the campus Tulsa-based NORDAM, one of the and women who work at NORDAM,” physically, and in the lives of students,” world’s largest independently owned aeroSiegfried says. “We call them stakeholders, Peters says. “We are thankful for the space companies, also was inducted. They because they have a stake in the business unprecedented support we’ve gotten from were represented by vice president of culture, and are the driving force of our corporate our donors and continue to get from our communication and corporate responsibility culture. Many are OSU grads themselves donors. It’s a dramatic change from the Bailey J. Siegfried and his wife, Kellner. and want to give back. And so do we. past, when very little was given “It’s our stakeholders who are because very little was needed. training OSU interns here, and it’s Now there’s a greater need, and we our stakeholders who are deciding are very appreciative of our donors which product donations provide The individuals and organizations who stepping up to help us.” make up the Proud & Immortal Society have the best learning opportunities.

Richard Cochran (1977 NORDAM and its stakeholdhad a transformational impact on Oklahoma ers support our state universities economics, ’90 master of business State University. Inductees will forever be administration) was among the because it’s the right thing to do honorees. He has created three for the future of our workforce, recognized alongside the most celebrated endowments to support OSU. business, community and state.” figures in our university’s history.”

The Betty J. Cochran Chair in The event’s emcee was OSU Kirk Jewell, president, OSU Foundation History, named for his mother, is alumnus Kelly Ogle, anchor for the first endowed faculty position KWTV (channel 9) in Oklahoma in the history department. The Milton City. April Golliver-Mohiuddin, associThe organization was honored B. Cochran Graduate Fellowship, named ate professor of voice and co-director of for nearly 30 years of supporting The for his father, and the Cochran Family opera, and Grant Harper, senior music Helmerich Research Center in Tulsa, the Scholarship both support students with major, both sang, and the OSU Jazz Oklahoma EPSCoR Fund, Mechanical financial needs.

Orchestra performed under the direcand Aerospace Engineering, and OSU He says he was honored to be in the tion of Tommy Poole, assistant profesAthletics. The NORDAM and Siegfried company of others who are committed sor and director of jazz studies, for the family investments, intern program and to education’s benefits for individuals evening’s entertainment. O gifts-in-kind have also provided teaching

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’70s ’40s Margie Ruth Horn, ’49 horticulture, retired in 1985 as a research biologist.

’50s Marguerite Domatti, ’50 physical education/health, retired from teaching in Dallas in January 1989.

She’s now living in The Forum at Park Lane, a senior facility in Dallas.

Neva Chelf, ’51 natural science, welcomed her first great-granddaughter, Lexie.

Stanley Patton, ’56 agronomy, is retired from John Deere Co. and living in Moline, Illinois.

Art Bieri, ’58 secondary education, ’65 master’s degree in secondary education, has published one book titled Action Games. His second book, A Squirrel’s Dilemma, published in June 2007.

Ed Henderson, ’52 animal science livestock operations, ’60 master’s degree in agricultural eduation, is living in Fort Gibson, Oklahoma. He enjoys attending OSU home football games and baseball games. He retired in 1993 but still runs some cattle.

Nolen Sparks, ’55 industrial engineering and management, lost his wife, Loreva, in January 2017.

Anna Maslanka, ’58 family relations and child development, lost her husband, Bob, in October 2016.

’60s Farrell Emhoolah, ’60 business, has retired as an agent at the Internal Revenue Service.

Cotton Dunn, ’61 accounting, and Jerry Dunn, ’61 elementary education, are proud to have two grandsons at OSU, Colt and Ben Calder.

Joyia Elinson, ’61 doctoral degree in business administration, is enjoying retirement and her aerobics classes five days a week.

Kay Peetoom, ’61, elementary education, retired as an elementary music teacher from Amarillo, Texas, schools after 24 years in May 2007.

She was named District Teacher of the Year in 1998-99 and received the Bob Ashworth Award for outstanding service to the district in 2007. She reconnected with a Guthrie High School classmate, Harold Peetoom, at their 50th reunion and married him in 2011.

Steve Maison, ’70 music, is excited to announce his new grandson and OSU l e g a c y. J a s p e r Chase Maison was born December 7, 2016. Despite living in Orlando, Florida, Jasper came home from the hospital in full OSU Cowboys gear.

Elizabeth Straatveit, ’73 interior design, has retired in Oklahoma on the family farm southeast of Davenport.

Luann Waters, ’73 zoology, ’81 master’s degree in science education, and Jim Waters, Jan Smith, ’62 pre-veterinary sci’74 agricultural ecoence, ’64 doctoral degree in veterinomics, live in Wynnary medicine, enjoyed seeing sevnewood, Oklahoma. eral of her classmates at their 52nd Their son, Nick, and daughter-in-law, Brooke, had a boy, Nahshon, on reunion in Oklahoma City last fall.

October 20, 2016. He is a potential Michael Agan, ’66 accounting, fifth-generation Cowboy. lost his wife of 52 years, Carolyn, to Mark Newmaster, ’74 hotel and ALS. He is still an avid cyclist, having restaurant administration, retired ridden over 281,000 miles. from 41 years in his sales career. He Tom Witt, ’66 eco- is now traveling the lower 48 states nomics, was in his recreational vehicle. inducted into the Order of Vandalia, Edwina Trout, ’74 elementary eduthe highest honor cation, was named the 2016-17 Outfor service to West standing Adjunct for the Educational Virginia University, Policy and Leadership Studies area on June 3. He is a in the College of Education at the professor emeritus in economics University of Oklahoma. She also following a distinguished career with owns Partners in Peak Performance, the WVU College of Business and a leadership development consulting Economics. firm, and is employed by Exxon Mobil.

Edwina received her doctoral degree Nancy McCoy, ’68 elementary edu- in instructional psychology from OU in cation, has retired from teaching and 1994. She is married to Robert Evans, is now tutoring third-grade students M.D., and they have one child, Caroto help them improve their compre- line Philley, ’03 management scihension. She swims three days a ence and information systems, ’04 week at the YWCA and goes to yoga. telecommunications.

David Smith, ’68 civil engineering, is enjoying his two grandchildren, Olive, 3, and Owen, 10 months.

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Phillip Street, ’77 zoology, retired from federal government service in March 2006. He served on the Idaho Sportsmen Alliance board of directors from 2011-2015.

’80s Mark King, ’80 political sciences, showed his OSU pride while participating in a Mt. Everest climbing expedition in early 2017.

Julie Schurman, ’80 marketing and management, is working in advanced technical management at Frontier Communications. New grandson Ryker has joined granddaughters Natalie and Brooklyn.

Virginia Ives, ’84 nutritional sciences, is working for Novo Nordisk Inc. as a diabetes educator in Fort Worth, Texas. She relocated to Fort Worth after 32 years in Dallas.

Guy Sims, ’84 agricultural education, was installed as chairman of the Oklahoma Bankers Association at the May convention.

Rick Anderson, ’85 accounting, ’85 MBA, and wife, Julie, are celebrating Julie’s move from a private practice optometrist in the Kansas City area to the University of TexasRio Grande Valley as the associate dean in the college of health affairs.

Bertie Chawla, ’86 civil engineering, is the CEO of Professional Associates Construction Services Inc. in Cindy Hilger, ’75 elementary educa- Lake Forest, California. He and wife, tion, retired in June 2016 as a teacher Beverly Chawla, ’89 English, are and school counselor after a 32-year celebrating 30 years of marriage. career.

They have three kids, Tara, Aaron and Bryce, and one dog named Okie.

Karen Bentley, ’75 radio/television/film, is working as the assistant Felicia Kellett, ’89 child developto the dean of the Graduate College ment, obtained her license to work at the University of Oklahoma Health as a clinical social worker in 2005.

Sciences Center in Oklahoma City.

Nancy Goulding, ’77 secretarial administration, and Curt Goulding, ’77 agricultural economics, have a company together, Goulding and

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Associates, where they help develop leaders. Curt is also CEO of GouldingRussel-Stone, a food and agricultural investment company. The Gouldings were recently blessed with their first grandchild, Miles.

Experience

at

VisitStillwaterOK.org

VISIT STILLWATER AD DA ILY F L IG H

TS

L E A R N M O RTO AND FROM DFW INTERNATIO N A L A IR P O R E ! V IS I T S T IL T LWAT E R O K .O R G / F LY

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Keep Us Posted

’90s Georgianna Oliver, ’92 political science, is the CEO of Package Concierge Inc.

Alumni Association members may submit information to be published as a classnote online and in STATE magazine based on availability of space. Announcements that are incomplete (such as marriage/union and birth announcements without spouse/partner information) or older than a year may not be considered for publication.

Clearly print your information and mail to Class Notes, 201 ConocoPhillips OSU Alumni Center,

Mike McCullough, ’94 horticulture, completed a master’s of public administration degree from San Diego State University in December 2016.

He works as a government affairs administrator at Monterey One Water.

Teresa Taylor, ’94 elementary education, retired from teaching special education at Enid High School in May 2015. She is enjoying her 27 grandchildren and training them to be future Cowboys and Cowgirls.

Michael Presnal, ’95 marketing, wife Jaclyn, and son Owen, are moving to Salt Lake city.

They are expecting a baby girl around Homecoming.

Carl Bruce, ’97 chemical engineering, was named an “Energy and Environmental Trailblazer” by The National Law Journal in June. He is a principal in the Fish & Richardson Dallas office.

Stillwater, OK 74078. Information can also be emailed to info@orangeconnection.org or submitted online at orangeconnection.org/update.

A L U M N U S /A L U M N A

LAST NAME

FIRST NAME

MIDDLE/MAIDEN

ADDRESS

CIT Y

S TAT E

PREFERRED PHONE

PREFERRED EMAIL

O K L A H O M A S TAT E D E G R E E(S) A N D Y E A R (S)

ZIP

S P O U S E / PA R T N E R

LAST NAME

FIRST NAME

MIDDLE/MAIDEN

CIT Y

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O K L A H O M A S TAT E D E G R E E(S) A N D Y E A R (S)

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C O M PA N Y N A M E

C O M PA N Y A D D R E S S

ZIP

RETIREMENT

’00s Erin Pekar, ’04 biological sciences, celebrated the birth of her second child on April 28, 2017.

Bruce Spitzer, ’04 doctoral degree in curriculum instruction, has been chairman of the Department of Education and professor of education in the School of Education and Health Sciences at North Central College in Naperville, Illinois, since July 1. He previously was dean of the School of Education at Quincy University in Quincy, Illinois.

Macey Hedges Mueller, ‘05 agricultural communications, and her husband, Josh, welcomed a son, Robert Paul Raleigh Mueller, on January 19, 2017. The family farms and ranches near Halstead, Kansas.

POSITION

M O N T H / DAY / Y E A R

C O M PA N Y N A M E

CIT Y

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DAT E O F B I R T H :

M O N T H / DAY / Y E A R

S O N / DAU G H T E R / G R A N D S O N / G R A N D DAU G H T E R ( p l e a s e c i r c l e)

FIRST NAME

MIDDLE NAME

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( p l e a s e i n c l u d e p u b l i s h e d n o t i c e)

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M O N T H / DAY / Y E A R

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IN MEMORIAM

S TAT E

CIT Y

A D D I T I O N A L I N F O R M AT I O N

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(a c c o m p l i s h m e n t s , h o n o r s , e t c .)

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Joshua Westmor e l a n d, ’06 landscape contracting, is proud to announce he, wife Crystal and daughter Stella, 3, are expecting another OSU legacy in November — a Cowgirl.

’10s Derek Dillard, ’11 accounting, married Jill Duggar in June 2014. The two welcomed their first son, Israel David, in April 2015 and their second son, Samuel, July 8, 2017.

J o n a t h a n Stockton, ’12 civil and environmental engineering, ’15 master’s degree in business administration, and Courtney Stockton, ’13 human development and family science, welcomed their first child, Jeremiah, on April 19, 2017.

Breanna Fuller, ’14 animal science, received a job promotion with Hollywood Feed pet retailer and moved to Memphis, Tennessee. She is now working on the buying team as a junior buyer.

Erin Scanlan, ’15 marketing and management, is grateful for all the tools and skills gained at the Spears School of Business. She utilizes both serving as team director for FOCUS — the Fellowship of Catholic University Students — at the University of Texas at Austin. She has used lessons learned in classes from Jerry Rackley, Mark Weiser and Don Mitchell on a daily basis and is grateful to be part of such an incredible alumni base and university.

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In Memoriam Sylvia Abercrombie, ’41 home economics, died October 28, 2016.

She was born September 6, 1921, in Isabella, Oklahoma. After earning her degree, she worked for years in her own nursery school in Norman, Oklahoma, and taught in Chickasha, Oklahoma, schools. She was preceded in death by her husband, Ralph, and daughter Suzan Chapman. She is survived by her daughter, Kimm Abercrombie, and son, Denis Abercrombie.

Thomas Byron Smith, ’52 industrial engineering and management, died May 8, 2017 in Lakeway, Texas. He was born March 6, 1929 in Ryan, Oklahoma, and was the valedictorian of the Ryan High School Class of 1947. He was an all-around athlete in football, basketball, baseball, track and boxing. At OSU, he was president of Sigma Tau honor society and editor of Oklahoma State Engineer magazine. In 1952-55, he served in active combat duty with the United States Army in Korea, logging 1000 hours of flight time in 4000 landings in Cessna L-19s. Smith was registered as a professional engineer in Texas, and he was a Legion of Honor member of the Society of Petroleum Engineers. He worked for Hughes Tool Co. for 37 years, and he was principal in Smith Consulting Services for 23 years. His wife of 65 years was Diane Stafflebach Smith, ’51 journalism, a former editor of the Daily O’Collegian. They lived in Oklahoma, Kansas, Wyoming, Louisiana, Texas, Colorado, Singapore and France.

Michael Crooch, ’66 accounting, ’67 master’s degree in accounting, died November 24, 2016. He was born in Sapulpa, Oklahoma. He earned a doctoral degree in business administration at Michigan State University in 1970. He was an associate professor of accounting and a full professor at Oklahoma State University from 19701979. He joined Arthur Andersen & Co. in 1979 and became a partner in 1981, retiring in 2000. He was later appointed to the Financial Accounting Standards Board, retiring from that in 2008. He lived in Geneva, Illinois, with his wife, Janet Crooch, ’75, elementary education.

James David “Buddy” Ryan 1931 - 2016 James David “Buddy” Ryan played football for Oklahoma A&M College where he earned four letters as a guard between 1952 and 1955. He graduated in 1957 with a bachelor’s degree in education. He went on to a 35-season coaching career, serving as head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles and Arizona Cardinals, defensive line coach for the Minnesota Vikings and defensive coordinator of the Chicago Bears and Houston Oilers. Ryan passed away on June 28, 2016.

He was raised outside Frederick, Oklahoma. He served as a sergeant in the United States Army during the Korean War. Ryan served as a defensive line coach for the University of Buffalo before finishing his college coaching career with Vanderbilt.

His professional football coaching career began with the New York Jets in 1968. It was here that Ryan earned his first Super Bowl Ring.

After his time with the Jets, Ryan’s first job as a defensive coordinator came in 1976 with the Vikings under Bud Grant.

The Vikings defensive line was known as “Purple People Eaters” for their ability to intimidate and punish rivals.

Ryan spent two years there before moving to the rival Bears, where he invented the 46 defense that overwhelmed the league with its aggressiveness and unpredictability. The Bears would go on to Super Bowl XX where they beat the New England Patriots.

Ryan was offered the position of head coach for the Philadelphia Eagles in 1986. The Eagles made the playoffs in 1988, 1989 and 1990.

He later became the defensive coordinator for the Houston Oilers in 1993 after being an NFL commentator for CNN. Ryan’s defensive team helped the Oilers achieve an 11-game winning streak during the 1993 NFL season.

Ryan’s final coaching excursion was with the Arizona Cardinals.

His coaching legacy continues with his twin sons, Rex and Rob.

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In Memoriam Lo n g ti m e O k l ahoma State athletics team physician, Dr. Donald “Doc” Cooper passed away February 15, 2017. He was 88 years old.

Doc Cooper was the director of the Oklahoma State University Health Center and served as OSU’s athletic physician from 1960-1988.

He was born August 11, 1928, in Columbus, Kansas. Standing at 5-foot-1, he knew that a career as an athlete was limited, but he loved sports. Cooper first decided he wanted to pursue a career in the sports medicine field when he was 13 years old.

He attended Pittsburg State University where he would meet his wife of 66 years, Dona Faye Maddux.

They were married on June 4, 1950, followed by four years of medical school at Kansas University where he graduated fourth in his class in 1953.

Following medical school, Cooper served two years as a captain in the United States Air Force and then became team physician and assistant director of student health services at Kansas State University in Manhattan. He came to OSU in 1960.

A pioneer and leader in the treatment of spor ts-related injuries, Cooper was inducted into the Oklahoma Hall of Fame in 1998. He was a founding member of the National Athletic Trainers Association and served on numerous special committees during his career, including the President’s Council for Physical Fitness under both Ronald Reagan and George Bush. In 1968, he was the first Oklahoma physician to be a team medical doctor for the Oympics.

He was a consultant to the NCAA rules committee from 1969 to 1975, recommending and helping institute changes to make the game safer.

Along with the outlawing of certain kinds of blocks, Cooper successfully pushed to make mouthpieces mandatory.

Cooper and his wife, Dona, were very involved at the First Presbyterian Church in Stillwater and in the community. He was a founding member of the Stillwater Oklahoma Crisis Center and a volunteer doctor at the Stillwater Community Health Center. Once he retired, Cooper enjoyed spending time on the golf course and keeping up with OSU sports.

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NFL and CFL coach and player Neill Armstrong starred on OAMC National Championship Team Neill Ford Armstrong, touchdowns during his five-year NFL career.

Oklahoma A&M star Armstrong helped the Eagles capture the NFL football player and championship in 1948 and 1949. two-time All American, After his time with the Eagles, Armstrong died August 10, 2016, went on to play for the Canadian Football in Trophy Club, Texas.

League’s Winnipeg Blue Bombers in 1951 He was 90 years old. and from 1953-54 where his playing career Graduating with concluded. a bachelor’s degree in Armstrong returned to Stillwater for his physical education/ first coaching job where he served as an assishealth in 1947, he was a four-year OAMC tant coach under head coach Cliff Speegle letterman from 1943-46. He is from 1955-61. He helped one of only two people who both coach his alma mater to a win played professional football and over Florida State in the 1958 served as a team head coach in Bluegrass Bowl. the NFL and Canadian Football His first professional coachLeague. ing job was with the Houston Hailing from Tishomingo, Oilers from 1962-63 as an Oklahoma, Armstrong played on assistant coach. After that, he two of Oklahoma A&M’s most returned to Canada and got his memorable teams, winning the first professional head coaching Cotton Bowl in 1944 and the job with the Edmonton Eskimos Sugar Bowl in 1945. Known as from 1964-69.

“Felix the Cat” to his teammates, Jane and Neill Armstrong He later returned to the NFL Armstrong led the nation in as an assistant for the Minnesota joined their grandson, receiving yards in both 1943 and Cole Farden, who also Vikings from 1970-77, when the 1946. The 1945 OAMC team played for the Cowboys, Vikings made history with Super was retroactively named national at a home game.

Bowl appearances in 1970, 1974, champions by the American 1975 and 1977.

Football Coaches Association.

After his time with the Vikings, Armstrong During his time at Oklahoma A&M, was hired as head coach of the Chicago Bears Armstrong met and married his wife, Jane, from 1978-81. From 1982-89, he served as an whom he had been married to for 70 years assistant coach for the Dallas Cowboys. When when he passed.

Jimmy Johnson took over as coach of the Armstrong proved his all-around athletiCowboys, he retained Armstrong as a consulcism when he lettered for the Aggie baskettant, winning Super Bowls in 1993 and 1994. ball team and track and field team. However, The Cowboys’ Super Bowl victory in 1996 sports were not his only interest. Armstrong marked Armstrong’s last game in football. He was also president of the Oklahoma A&M spent his retirement with his family, golfing Student Government in 1946. and watching football.

After college, Armstrong was a firstOne of his grandchildren, Cole Farden, round pick of the Philadelphia Eagles in was a punter and four-year letterman 1947, where he would go on to collect 76 for the Oklahoma State football team from career receptions for 961 yards and 11 2001-04, earning a bachelor’s degree in education in 2005.

Remembering a Visionary Neal Patterson, 1949-2017

PHOTO / GARY LAWSON

N

eal Patterson passed away July 9 at the age of 67 from unexpected complications of a soft-tissue cancer that was diagnosed in January 2016. Several hundred people gathered at the United Methodist Church of the Resurrection at his funeral service in Leawood, Kansas, to hear remembrances from his friends, who detailed Patterson’s humble beginnings as a farm boy.

He spent his early life working the wheat fields on the Oklahoma-Kansas border where his father insisted his sons not stop their chores before making “one last round after sundown.”

The work ethic Patterson learned from his father eventually led him to study finance to become a businessman, expanding health care technology.

He earned a bachelor’s degree in finance in 1971 and a master’s degree in business administration in 1973 from Oklahoma State University. In 2014, during the 100th anniversary of business education at OSU, Patterson was recognized as a “Spears Tributes: 100 For 100” honoree.

“Neal was one of OSU’s most successful graduates,” says OSU President Burns Hargis. “He was a passionate visionary who helped revolutionize the computerization of hospital records.

His generosity and support of OSU extended across many interests. We will miss him dearly.”

Neal affected the lives of millions through his leadership, entrepreneurial spirit and commitment to transform the health care industry. He co-founded Cerner Corporation with two colleagues in 1979. Today, Cerner is the world’s largest publicly traded health information technology company with approximately 24,000 associates worldwide. FORTUNE magazine recently named Cerner one of the world’s most admired companies.

Patterson was instrumental in creating the OSU Center for Health Systems Innovation with gifts totaling $6 million. The center is a collaborative effort of the Spears School of Business and the OSU Center for Health Sciences, focusing on creating a comprehensive and coherent vision for health care problem-solving through market-based solutions.

“A little over three years ago, the Center for Health Systems Innovation was initiated through the generous financial support of Neal Patterson,” says William Paiva, the center’s executive director. “Growing up in Manchester, Oklahoma, he believed passionately and personally about the need to improve rural health care through innovation and information technology. He

also knew his alma mater, Oklahoma State University, could be a national player addressing this critical market segment of the health care industry.

“During that brief period and building off his initial support, the center has grown to over 30 full-time employees and over 10 graduate students working every day to transform rural and Native American health. Mr. Patterson was always generous with his time, passion and both personal and business connections to make this effort a success and making Oklahoma State a national player in rural and Native American health innovation. We will always be grateful for all he’s done for OSU and the Center for Health Systems Innovation.”

Earlier this year, Patterson was announced as the main benefactor for the construction of a new stadium for the OSU Cowgirl soccer program, a $20 million project scheduled to be completed in the fall of 2018. The new complex will be named after Patterson and will be a showcase for college soccer with club seats, plaza and upper bowl gathering areas and a north end zone terrace area, and seating designed specifically for OSU students.

Patterson and Cerner co-founder Cliff Illig were co-owners of Kansas City’s Major League Soccer franchise, Sporting KC. “Neal’s passing is a tremendous loss on multiple levels,” Oklahoma State athletic director Mike Holder says. “He challenged everyone to reach for the stars and set an example of what can be accomplished by working hard and dreaming big. He’s given generously to athletics in an effort to inspire the next generation of students to change the world.”

Patterson also made major contributions to OSU’s Gamma Chi chapter of Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity. A new house on University Avenue is the ninth-largest fraternity house in the United States and was dedicated in April 2017 as the Neal L. Patterson Chapter House.

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Book Corner Constance Squires, ’05

Live from Medicine Park is the second novel written by Constance Squires who earned a doctoral degree in English at OSU in 2005.

The book explores two unlikely subjects: Southwestern Oklahoma and rock music. Live from Medicine Park tells the tale of down-on-hisluck filmmaker, Ray Wheeler.

He reluctantly agrees to film the comeback of rock-and-roll singer Lena Wells. After arriving in her hometown of Medicine Park, Oklahoma, Wheeler quickly disappoints everyone on the film set. To remain a part of the project, Wheeler must impress Lena Wells. After becoming romantically involved with Wells, he becomes entangled with her family and bandmates. Wheeler must face many truths about love, relationships and responsibility, which he has avoided for years. Searching for identity and purpose amid tragedy, he finds redemption may be possible.

Squires’ first novel, Along the Watchtower, received the Oklahoma Book Award for Fiction in 2012. Her short stories have appeared in Guernica, Shenandoah, Atlantic Monthly and several other publications all over the world. Squires is in the process of writing her third novel, The Real Remains. She works as an associate professor of English at the University of Central Oklahoma and lives in Edmond with her daughter and husband.

Live from Medicine Park is available at amazon.com and oupress.com

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Passages

Kenneth Coe, ’51, Tulsa, Oklahoma

Barbara Ahring,’61, ’72 Stillwater, Oklahoma

Charles Lanham Jr., ’51, Tulsa, Oklahoma

Helen Caughlin, ’61, ’87, Tonkawa, Oklahoma

Basil Myers, ’51, ’69, Pawnee, Oklahoma

Jerry Dusenbury, ’61, ’63, Attica, Kansas

Thomas Smith, ’52, Lakeway, Texas

Bill Emmons, ’61, Tulsa, Oklahoma

Betty Waters, ’52, Red Rock, Oklahoma

Russal Brawley, ’63, Oklahoma City

Donn Dodd, ’53, Claremore, Oklahoma

Ron Eggers, ’63, Fairmont, Oklahoma

Virginia Brown, ’42, Oklahoma City

Sally Buxkemper, ’54, Ballinger, Texas

Harold Forrest, ’63, Lawton, Oklahoma

James Logan Jr., ’42, Broken Arrow, Oklahoma

Louis Enlow, ’54, Issaquah, Washington

Melba Jordan, ’63, Norman, Oklahoma

Claribel Travis, ’44, McAlester, Oklahoma

Paula Plummer, ’54, ’57, Shawnee Mission, Kansas

Dean Meyer, ’63, Cleo Springs, Oklahoma

Mary Reynolds, ’46, Saint Peters, Missouri

Jim Bullock Jr., ’55, ’89, Edmond, Oklahoma

Alan Milacek, ’63, ’76, Waukomis, Oklahoma

Lacey Butler Jr., ’47, ’55, ’56, Enid, Oklahoma

Beverly Bale, ’56, Perkins, Oklahoma

Coy Freeman, ’64,’ 67, Knoxville, Tennessee

Bob Williams, ’47, ’51, Edmond, Oklahoma

Sue Bourland, ’56, Round Rock, Texas

Keith Hardiman, ’64, Ames, Oklahoma

Bob Nance, ’48, Cedar Rapids, Iowa

Nancy Park, ’56, ’60, Baldwin, Wisconsin

Rilda Hicks, ’64, Golden, Colorado

Patsy Neustadt, ’48, Ardmore, Oklahoma

Deb Gann, ’57, Stillwater, Oklahoma

Becky Johnson, ’64, ’68, Tulsa, Oklahoma

Helen Williams, ’48, Tabernash, Colorado

Leon Self, ’57, Noel, Missouri

Neal Kilmer, ’64, ’71, ’79, Las Cruces, New Mexico

John Bundren, ’49, ’51 Tulsa, Oklahoma

Pat Tolbert, ’57, Plano, Texas

Gordon Semore, ’64, Poteau, Oklahoma

Calvin Garrett, ’49, Oklahoma City

Dean Booth, ’58, ’83, ’87, Iowa Falls, Iowa

Joe Struckle, ’64, El Reno, Oklahoma

Albert Lukken, ’49, Edmond, Oklahoma

Jerry LaGrow, ’59, Cherokee, Oklahoma

Margaret Berry, ’65, ’82, Stillwater, Oklahoma

William Brown, ’50, ’54, Wright City, Oklahoma

Jarol LeGate, ’58, Claremore, Oklahoma

Sam Countiss, ’65, Waurika, Oklahoma

Willard Collier, ’50, Oklahoma City

Joidy Salisbury, ’58, Tulsa, Oklahoma

Dave Davis, ’65, Saint Louis, Missouri

Ruth Means, ’50, Tulsa, Oklahoma

Bill Keeney, ’59, Duncan, Oklahoma

Jerry Gresham, ’65, ’71, ’73, Martin, Tennessee

Gail Burton, ’51, Benton, Arkansas

James Pendergraft, ’59, ’61, South West City, Missouri

Ramona Herren, ’65, Cherokee, Oklahoma

Frank Cochran, ’51, ’69, Lake Jackson, Texas

Elton Brooks, ’60, Elverta, California

Joseph Amos, ’66, ’72, Murfreesboro, Tennessee

The Oklahoma State University Alumni Association has received notice that the following graduates died between February 16, 2017 and May 31, 2017.

Their college graduation year(s) and last place of residence are listed in Passages. Families may send biographies for Class Notes In Memoriam to the OSU Alumni Association, STATE Magazine, 201 ConocoPhillips OSU Alumni Center, Stillwater, OK 74078-7043.

Tommy Doyle, ’66, San Antonio, Texas

Randy Grossman, ’73, Katy, Texas

Steven Mindeman, ’90, Tulsa, Oklahoma

Jack Moore Jr., ’66, Washington, Oklahoma

Jack Fryrear, ’74, Oklahoma City

Howard Benham, ’92, Prague, Oklahoma

Karen Orme, ’66, Bethany, Oklahoma

Steve Graham, ’74, Scottsdale, Arizona

Jill Webb, ’92, Olathe, Kansas

Lorraine Provine, ’66, ’88, Norman, Oklahoma

Tom Harrold, ’74, Oologah, Oklahoma

David Chapman, ’93, Silver Springs, Nevada

Samuel Flanigin, ’68, Ponca City, Oklahoma

Merrye Ann Maddux, ’74 Conroe, Texas

Roxanne Hopper, ’94, Ralston, Oklahoma

Spencer Hays, ’68, ’71, Nashville, Tennessee

Farris Stevens, ’74, Tulsa, Oklahoma

Gina Cooper, ’95, ’09, Tonkawa, Oklahoma

Jack Huffman, ’68, Oklahoma City

James Horton, ’75, Norman, Oklahoma

Ingrid Hendrix, ’95, Stillwater, Oklahoma

Tim Baldwin, ’69, ’84, Oklahoma City

Pat Finley, ’77, ’81, ’91, Duncan, Oklahoma

Laura Stryker, ’97, McAlester, Oklahoma

Brent Chapel, ’69, Herndon, Virginia

Gerald Dorsey, ’78, Sand Springs, Oklahoma

Rhonda White, ’98, Union City, Oklahoma

Cricket Kingham, ’69, Tulsa, Oklahoma

Ralph Merriman, ’78, Lincoln, Nebraska

Katherine Lennart, ’00, Houston, Texas

Lonnie Nusz, ’69, Mansfield, Texas

Carolyn Dawson, ’79, Yukon, Oklahoma

Chris Burkey, ’02, Edmond, Oklahoma

Linda Stoddard, ’69, ’70, Glencoe, Oklahoma

Frank Saxton, ’79, ’84, Newalla, Oklahoma

Jacob Millington, ’04, Fairfax, Virginia

Marilyn Bartlett, ’70, Tulsa, Oklahoma

Roger DiSalvatore, ’80, Oklahoma City

Eric Hensley, ’08, Oklahoma City

Eddie Brown, ’70, Port Huron, Michigan

Mary Mullican, ’80, ’93, Lowell, Arkansas

Clayton Cochran, ’10, Oklahoma City

Bill DuBois, ’70, ’75, ’83, Russell, Minnesota

Julie Hamilton, ’81, Oklahoma City

Katelyn Monroe, ’15, Claremore, Oklahoma

John Haskins, ’70, Ada, Oklahoma

Angela Luster, ’82, Spencer, Oklahoma

Wyatt Phillips, ’70, Indianola, Oklahoma

Susan Miller, ’85, Tulsa, Oklahoma

Dennis Johnson, ’71, Waynoka, Oklahoma

Sean Ratliff, ’85, Tulsa, Oklahoma

Karen Schott, ’71, Oklahoma City

Don Burke, ’86, Rosston, Oklahoma

Terry Chase, ’72, Mantachie, Mississippi

Rick Petricek Jr., ’87, ’96, Skiatook, Oklahoma

Larry Ille, ’72, Stillwater, Oklahoma

Shirley McFarland, ’88, Oklahoma City

Hayden Miles, ’72, ’74, ’78, Bells, Tennessee

Cindy Wilson, ’88, Tulsa, Oklahoma

John Moorman, ’72, Perkins, Oklahoma

Linda Blair, ’90, ’95, Guthrie, Oklahoma

Book Corner Daryl Talbot, ’73

Laughing in Rank and File is the second collection of militarythemed comics by author Daryl Talbot, a 1973 Oklahoma State University graduate with a bachelor’s degree in art education.

Laughing in Rank and File is a follow-up to Talbot’s first collection of comics, Laughing in Cadence.

The different illustrations depict situations in everyday military life, such as weapons training, combat situations and basic training. The fun drawings and relatable scenarios will bring on pure nostalgia for veterans.

The comics were inspired

by Talbot’s personal experience in the military. During his time in the military, Talbot served in the Marine Corps, Navy, Army Reserves, Air Force Reserves and Oklahoma Air National Guard.

“Serving in the military is very stressful and demanding in every way possible,” Talbot says.

“It helps to try and find humor in combat, training and everyday military life.”

Talbot has drawn cartoons for Leatherneck Magazine, a publication geared toward active and former Marines, as well as other publications.

He received the Will Rogers Cowboy Cartoonist of the Year Award from the Academy of Western Artists. Talbot lives in Shawnee, Oklahoma, with his wife, Theresa, who earned a bachelor’s degree in elementary education from OSU in 1974.

Laughing in Rank and File: Military Cartoon Humorousness is available at Barnes and Noble and amazon.com.

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We the People: A Portrait of Early Oklahoma August 19 – October 22, 2017

10th & Main Looking North, Stillwater, circa 1907. Henry M. Wantland, photographer. 2000.005.4.056. Robert E. Cunningham Collection, Dickinson Research Center, National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum.

In 1891, Henry M. Wantland and his young family arrived in Oklahoma Territory and settled in Stillwater, a small town born of the Land Run and bustling with opportunity and ambition. He eventually purchased a photography studio and spent the next two decades recording the world around him – not just the people, but the streets they walked, the stores they frequented, the churches they attended, and the progress they celebrated. The diverse and vibrant communities of central Oklahoma emerge from his photographs.

1700 Northeast 63rd Street Oklahoma City, OK (405) 478-2250 nationalcowboymuseum.org Exhibition Sponsors: News Channel 4 (KFOR) • The Cresap Family Foundation Museum Partners: Devon Energy Corp. • E.L. & Thelma Gaylord Foundation Major Support: The Oklahoman Media Company • The True Foundation

Frank and Fern

BY K I M B E R LY R O B L I N

I

n a world so modern, it is sometimes difficult to recognize the past in the present. The Digital Age is about the new, the future, the horizon — high tech, high def, upgrade, update, faster, better. It’s a 21st-century fire sale, and everything old or outdated must go, often rendering the past little more than a mile marker for how far we have come. Out with Atari and VHS. In with pixels, Pinterest, tweets and TiVo. But this distinction between then and now is less absolute than most imagine, and we often share a great deal with our predecessors.

Consider alumni — a community that transcends time, gender, ethnicity and more. We often focus on class and major, but neither confers membership. It doesn’t matter when or what you studied — 1917 or 2017 — agriculture or English. These are incidentals. You are an alumnus because you earned a degree from Oklahoma A&M College/ Oklahoma State University. So, too, did Frank Armon Melton (1915) and Fern Lowry (1916). These Oklahoma A&M students might not have known Mike Gundy or Game Day, but they knew Old Central. They traversed the same (albeit smaller) campus, called Stillwater home, made friends, survived finals and graduated. Let’s meet a progressive pair who walked the campus 100 years ago.

Old Central, Oklahoma A&M, circa 1894 PHOTO / HENRY M. WANTLAND — 2000.005.6.42 ROBERT E. CUNNINGHAM COLLECTION, DICKINSON RESEARCH CENTER, NATIONAL COWBOY & WESTERN HERITAGE MUSEUM

Frank Armon Melton (18 9 6 -19 8 5 )

Frank Armon Melton, OAMC junior year PHOTO / HENRY M. WANTLAND — 2000.005.2.0175 ROBERT E. CUNNINGHAM COLLECTION, DICKINSON RESEARCH CENTER, NATIONAL COWBOY & WESTERN HERITAGE MUSEUM

Born in Cuba, Kansas, Frank Melton grew up in Stillwater. He was the oldest of four children in a home filled with drama. Literally. His mother and father both sang, and local newspapers recorded one of his earliest performances. The 1901 Daily Gazette noted, “Armon Melton’s solo, The Washington Pledge, was pleasingly presented by the little singer and as pleasingly received. For a four-year-old, he does remarkably well.”

His talents, however, were not limited to the stage. He also excelled in the classroom. As a young man at Oklahoma A&M, he pursued both. He performed in Mikado, Pirates of Penzance, Princess Ida, Fortune Hunters and more. He

joined Glee Club, the Science Society, played football and was named chief field musician.

In 1915, he graduated with a degree in science and literature. The college yearbook described him as “an actor and a musician and is considering a stage career, but we hear a girl in Texas will decide that.” Spoiler alert: he quit the stage for love … but not the kind you might be thinking.

After serving in World War I, Melton enrolled at the University of Missouri and took his first course in geology. It sparked what he called his “lifelong love affair with the Earth,” and his devotion never wavered. A doctoral degree (cum laude)

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from the University of Chicago followed, and he taught at Columbia University for a few years before returning home — at least to the state. He moved to Norman and for the next 41 years instructed and mentored students at the University of Oklahoma.

His contributions to the field of geology were groundbreaking. Geologists study what lies beneath the Earth, but

Melton challenged traditional methodology and dared to look upward. He utilized aerial photography as a research tool, and this subsequent photogeology revolutionized how people saw and studied the Earth’s surface. Its applications were diverse — the military used his ideas to identify terrain during World War II; the Atomic Energy Commission searched for uranium; and oil companies explored for petroleum.

Melton investigated the Ouachita Mountains, flood plains and sand dunes.

He was prolific as a writer, a collector of aerial photographs, and a dedicated professor who served on 63 separate master’s and doctoral degree committees while encouraging different perspectives and a multidisciplinary approach.

Fern Lowry

Fern Lowry, OAMC junior year PHOTO / HENRY M. WANTLAND — 2000.005.5.0206 ROBERT E. CUNNINGHAM COLLECTION, DICKINSON RESEARCH CENTER, NATIONAL COWBOY & WESTERN HERITAGE MUSEUM

The youngest of six children born to one of Stillwater’s founding families, Fern came of age not only with her hometown but also her alma mater. Opportunity had lured her father, Robert, to Oklahoma Territory, and the attorney had become a prominent and influential figure in the developing town. He and his wife, Annie, promoted arts and education, believing both had the power to transform individuals as well as communities. In 1890, he and others lobbied hard, and successfully, to make Stillwater the site of the new state college. It was the start of a long history between the Lowry family and the university. Six years later, Oklahoma A&M celebrated its first graduating class as the Lowrys welcomed the birth of their daughter, Fern.

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She became the fourth Lowry to attend A&M and wasted no time in taking an active role in campus life. Her memberships included Student Council, Girls Athletic Association, 16 Club, Debate Team, Drama, German Club, Literary Society, YWCA and yearbook staff. In 1916, she graduated with a bachelor’s degree in science and literature, but she wanted more.

She enrolled at Cornell College in Iowa and earned another degree in 1918 before returning to Oklahoma to begin her career in social work. As a profession, it was fairly new. Society had long helped those in need but not within an organized framework. Women led the movement to establish best practices and standards.

Over the next 30 years, Fern tirelessly advocated for women and children as a teacher at Columbia University, where she earned her master’s degree; as a consultant for the New York City Department of Health; as a case manager at the New Jersey Reformatory for Women; and as an author and editor of academic papers.

Most importantly, however, was her pioneering effort to apply social psychology to social work.

Clients, she believed, should not be viewed and defined by their challenges alone. They were more than the problems they faced, and their cultural and socioeconomic circumstances had to be considered. The level and quality of help a caseworker could provide directly corresponded to how well she understood her

(18 9 6 -19 8 3)

client. Simply put, early social work only addressed the “what.” Fern’s new paradigm addressed the “why.”

Both Frank and Fern dedicated their lives to teaching and learning, exemplifying Oklahoma State’s commitment to scholarship, instruction and service. Oklahoma A&M shaped them as students, and they in turn helped shape the world.

Learn about other alumni and see early images of Stillwater in We the People: A Portrait of Early Oklahoma, an exhibition that runs from August 19 to October 22, 2017, at the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City. The exhibition is sponsored by museum partners Devon Energy Corporation and the E.L. & Thelma Gaylord Foundation, with major support from True Foundation and The Oklahoman, and exhibition support from Dickinson Foundation, Cresap Family Foundation and KFOR (channel 4).

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Listen to audio excerpts of OSU alumni sharing their compelling life stories and college memories or read their interview transcripts at w w w.librar y.okstate.edu/oralhistor y/ostate.

Research Project Interviews OSU Alumni Throughout Oklahoma

In

2015, Oklahoma State University celebrated 125 years.

Amid all of the commemoration projects and events happening on campus during the anniversary year, the Oklahoma Oral History Research Program in the OSU Library began the Cowboy in Every County project. Alumni interviewed represented entrepreneurs, agriculturalists, social workers, educators, engineers, veterinarians, physicians, psychologists, journalists, historians, geologists, business people, accountants and home economists. Many talked about why they chose OSU and how they took lessons, inside and outside the classroom, with them as they moved forward after college.

For some, it was easy adjusting to college life and, for others, it posed a significant challenge. All had advice for current students. For example, agronomy student and 1984 graduate Gene Overton — a man whose only time spent outside of Minco, Oklahoma, were his four years at OSU — shared this advice: “I never had a professor who wouldn’t help me if I were struggling in something. If you get to know them, they get to know you. It makes for a whole lot better college experience, I think. Stick it out. There are going to be times when you’re not going to be happy. You’re going to want to go home, but I encourage everybody just to stick with it. You’ll never regret getting that degree.”

PHOTO / 1983 OSU YEARBOOK

BY S A R A H M I L L I G A N

Gene Overton joined his Alpha Gamma Rho fraternity brothers in a chapter picture for the 1983 OSU yearbook.

A great variety of stories are in this anniversary series of interviews and include sound advice. Memories of social life, notable classes and campus events are common threads throughout the recordings. Many perspectives show how the college experience has impacted individual lives.

COWBOYS IN EVERY COUNTY BY THE NUMBERS 84....... Interviews

43....... Major Fields of Study

77....... Counties

6,884....... Minutes Recorded

(almost 115 hours)

41....... Women 47....... Men 24....... Age of Youngest 87....... Age of Oldest

21,826....... Miles Traveled Learn more about Cowboys in Every County on the travel blog at cowboys.library.okstate.edu.

O-State Stories is part of the Oklahoma Oral History Research Program at the Edmon Low Library, chronicling the rich history, heritage and traditions of Oklahoma State University. Listen to audio excerpts of OSU alumni sharing their compelling life stories and college memories or read their interview transcripts. Read or listen to more recollections by visiting library.okstate. edu/oralhistory/ostate/. For more information, call 405-744-7685.

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TICKETS

ON

SALE A night with

SA N DR A BROW N author of dozens of New York Times’ best-sellers

NOV E M BE R 10, 2 017 CONOCOPHILLIPS OSU ALUMNI CENTER STILLWATER, OK

T O M A K E R E S E R VA T I O N S : Call

405-744-7273 or visit library.okstate.edu/friends/cobb

The H. Louise and H.E. “Ed” Cobb Speaker Series is presented annually by the Friends of the OSU Library.

PHOTO / BENTON RUDD

No matter where you give to

HOMETOW N:

Oklahoma State University, every

M A JOR ( S ) A ND MINOR ( S ) :

dollar makes a difference in the lives

Majors: Management and Marketing Minors: Human Resource Management & Entrepreneurship

of people touched by OSU and its

W H Y DID YOU DECIDE TO COME TO OSU?

land grant mission. For every gift, there is a story. Here are just a few students impacted by the generosity of scholarship donors. O

You can make a difference, too!

Discover your Orange Passion at

OSUgiving.com

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Edmond, Oklahoma, & Plano, Texas

FALL 2 2 00 1177

I decided on OSU with the push from my best friend, who said, “Malik, just do your research and apply. That won’t hurt will it?” I followed his instructions, and wow, was I surprised. I kept finding articles saying how OSU was the best college in Oklahoma and that the business school ranked highest as well! After applying, my next biggest concern was, “Will I be able to afford it?” Sure enough, OSU delivered in that area as well, and I am proud to have been a Cowboy ever since!

W H AT INSPIR ED YOU TO PU R SU E YOU R A R E A S OF ST U DY ?

I was inspired to study these areas of business so I could have a variety of skills once I graduate. Another common factor among all my studies are sections of leadership and being socially active.

Eventually, I would like to either own a business that makes an impact on high school/college student education or work for a benefit corporation with a similar mission.

W H AT WOULD YOU LIKE TO TELL PEOPLE A BOUT YOUR OSU EXPER IENCE?

I came from low socioeconomic status, was raised by a single-parent mother and became homeless for most of my high-school experience.

College was always my goal, but something I was always fearful I would be unable to complete due to the cost, forcing me to always wonder if I would be added to the statistics of college dropouts. Once I became a Cowboy, I knew this was not the future in store for me.

PHOTO / CHRIS LEWIS

HOMETOW N:

HOMETOW N:

M A JOR ( S ) A ND MINOR ( S ) :

M A JOR ( S ) A ND MINOR ( S ) :

HOW H AV E SCHOL A RSHIPS HELPED YOU?

W H AT DO YOU LIKE MOST A BOUT YOUR M A JOR A ND/OR COLLEGE?

Yukon, Oklahoma

Major: Geology Minor: Petroleum Engineering

They have been instrumental in allowing me to afford a top-notch education and focus more time on my academics and family. That is something that I have been beyond grateful for, and I am so blessed that our geology department has been able to provide me with so much meaningful support.

W H AT IS YOUR OR A NGE PASSION?

The Boone Pickens School of Geology, without question. They have given me unbelievable support, and it is, in my opinion, one of the best departments at OSU. W H AT A R E YOUR FUTUR E G OA LS?

To work as an exploration geologist for an energy company but eventually branch out and venture off on my own. If I ever am able to become financially stable, or achieve some form of wealth, then my goal is to give back to the School of Geology as well as further support my small nonprofit, which provides support for young people who are expecting a child while still in high school or college.

Duncan, Oklahoma Major: Animal Science Minor: Agricultural Economics and Agribusiness

I enjoy the demeanor of everyone in my department and college. Whether it’s a student, professor, faculty member or friend, they all treat you the same. I cannot express enough how thankful I am for the support I have received throughout my college experience from the people in both my department and college.

WHAT INSPIRED YOU TO PURSUE YOUR AREAS OF STUDY?

Growing up on a ranch in southwest Oklahoma, livestock has always been a part of my life. It was very natural for me to want to study animal science as a means of obtaining an appropriate undergraduate degree to prepare me for veterinary school. However, once I began my studies at OSU, I found my true passion is agricultural policy. I still feel my degree is very applicable, as I have the animal science background needed to be successful in pursuing a career in policy.

W H AT A R E YOUR FUTUR E G OA LS?

I hope to work in agricultural policy, making a difference in the state of Oklahoma.

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PHOTO / PHIL SHOCKLEY

C a s t i n g

a

COWBOY OSU alumnus hopes to honor the legend of childhood hero Frank Eaton with final monument

BY K A R O LY N B O L AY

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Harold Holden and his pony Daisey

Anyone who has been to an Oklahoma State University football game to cheer on the Cowboys knows the familiar face and antics of Pistol Pete. But many may not know the true cowboy, Frank Eaton, who inspired the university’s mascot.

H

arold Holden wants to change that. An Oklahoma artist, OSU alumnus and a real cowboy himself, Harold is the perfect man to create a monument to honor Frank Eaton — the real Pistol Pete.

Harold actually has a unique history with the gun-toting mascot, having met Eaton when he was a child.

Harold entered and rode his pony in the Cherokee Strip Days Parade in Enid when he was 5 years old. He performed a move familiar to any cowboy — rearing up his pony in front of the judges — and won a $5 check and an opportunity to sit on Frank Eaton’s lap and hold his gun, which Harold remembers felt like a cannon to a 5-year-old.

This memory has stayed with Harold throughout his career. For years, he has dreamed of honoring his childhood champion through his art.

“Well, it means a lot to do this monument because I’ve been thinking about it for so long,” Harold says. “And you know, I wasn’t sure I would ever get to do it.”

Harold studied at OSU for a year before attending the Texas Academy of Art in 1961. The OSU Alumni Association recognized the talent and achievements of Harold by naming him a Distinguished Alumnus in 2005.

Harold, or simply “H” as many know him, is a self-taught sculptor who has been capturing the spirit of the West in sculptures and paintings for over 35 years. He has completed 22 monuments for placement in Oklahoma, Texas, Kansas and Arkansas over the last 20 years.

After being diagnosed with pulmonary fibrosis in 2007 and undergoing a lung transplant in 2010, Harold decided he wouldn’t start any new monuments after he finished those in progress.

But he also decided that if given the opportunity to sculpt one of his heroes, he would be honored.

“H will probably never retire, but he has wanted to do this piece for almost 30 years,” says Edna Mae, Harold’s wife.

“Other projects have always gotten in the way, so he is thinking now is a great time to make this happen.”

Harold was recently inducted into the Hall of Great Westerners at the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum — the first Oklahoma artist to receive the honor.

“H is a very humble man despite his accomplishments and talent, and he always feels there are those more deserving or talented that should be recognized,” Edna Mae explains. “But, having said that, he is very appreciative, particularly when it is recognition for a lifetime of work chosen by such a prestigious organization.”

This isn’t the first time Harold has given back to the Cowboy family. He was honored to be the artist chosen to sculpt the “We Will Remember” monument in Gallagher Iba Arena to remember and honor the 10 men lost in a plane crash returning home from a basketball game in Colorado. The monument holds a special place in the hearts of the Holden family members as they reflect on the their own loss.

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“When they told me about it, I knew exactly how those parents felt because I had lost my grandson recently back then,” Harold explains. “I felt like that. I just fell to my knees when I found out.”

The sculpture is also special to Edna Mae. “Our friends Zane and Ann Fleming lost their son Nate in the crash,” Edna Mae says. “It was such a tragedy for so many people, but H was able to take his own grief and channel that into the ‘We Will Remember’ piece, not only as a way of dealing with his own loss but hopefully as a way to validate the grief of the families and the OSU community for their losses as well. It is a piece we both wish had never had to be done, but we are grateful that H was allowed to do it.”

The creation of this new sculpture is an opportunity for fellow alumni, friends of the university and fans of Frank Eaton to honor a cowboy and his OSU legacy. “[The monument] would be a constant reminder, especially to newer generations of students, that there really was a man behind the mascot,” Edna Mae says. “He isn’t a caricature but based on a real historical figure with an interesting history.”

The monument will literally be larger than life at approximately life and onequarter size when it is finished. It will take 18-24 months to complete the monument from agreement to dedication.

“This monument is a great opportunity for the OSU community to have a one-of-a-kind piece of art created by an alumnus that honors an OSU legend,” says alumna Gwen Shaw, a donor for the monument who is also the head of the fundraising efforts and a close friend of H and Edna Mae. A certain amount of money must be donated before Harold can begin his artistic magic of bringing the Frank Eaton monument to life. Those interested in donating or for more information on the project can contact Gwen Shaw at etta1218@aol.com.

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“H will probably never retire, but he has wanted to do this piece for almost 30 years.”

– Edna Mae Holden

PHOTO / PHIL SHOCKLEY

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2018 Travel Guide The Traveling Cowboys plan to span the globe in 2018.

From singing the blues to the holiday markets, there is something for everyone.

All trips are available to alumni and friends. Visit orangeconnection.org/travel to book your vacation today.

Sparkling South Pacific Cruise

Radiant Rhythms Cruise

Legends of the Nile

JANUARY 23–FEBRUARY 3, 2018 Experience Egypt’s wonders on a nine-night, small-group journey, featuring a Nile cruise and accommodations in Cairo and Luxor. Visit the Great Pyramid in Giza, the Sphinx, the Egyptian Museum and more. Fly to see Luxor and Abu Simbel’s temples and the Valleys of the Kings and Queens. Enjoy the services of a licensed Egyptologist and a travel director throughout. AHI

Gateway to Sunshine Cruise

FEBRUARY 3–13, 2018

MARCH 20–APRIL 2, 2018

APRIL 6–22, 2018

Take in Papeete’s waterfalls, view stunning landscapes in Mooréa, listen to Fakarava’s rare birds, witness one of the world’s largest lagoons in Rangiroa, gaze upon Bora Bora’s sparkling waters, learn about Raiatea’s fascinating history, and explore the connected islands that make up Hune. Go Next

Traveling from Argentina to Uruguay and then to Brazil, take in the radiant rhythms of the southeastern coastline of South America. Visit natural, historical and cultural attractions in Buenos Aires, Montevideo, Punta del Este, Rio Grande, Porto Belo, São Paulo, Paraty, Ilha Grande, Buzios and Rio de Janeiro. Go Next

Wander the San Diego Zoo. See the cactus garden of Cabo San Lucas and feel like a celebrity in Acapulco. Admire Puerto Quetzal’s astounding volcanoes, the awe-inspiring rainforest canopies of San Juan del Sur, and the rare virgin tropical dry forest of Puntarenas. Take an unforgettable passage through the Panama Canal and explore Spanish Naval History in Cartagena. Catch sight of the rare green sea turtle in Georgetown. Go Next

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Dutch Waterways River Cruise

Gems of the Danube

European Serenade Cruise

APRIL 18–26, 2018

MAY 14–24, 2018

MAY 16–25, 2018

Cruise for seven nights in Holland and Flanders aboard a Amadeus small river ship while the tulip fields are in bloom.

Meet locals during the River Life Forum®.

Tour the Kröller-Müller Museum. Visit Amsterdam, Bruges, Hoorn, Maastricht, Antwerp and Keukenhof Gardens.

Available options include an Amsterdam pre-cruise and The Hague, Delft and Kinderdijk post-cruise. Gohagan

On this cruise along the Danube River, you’ll have the opportunity to not only marvel at magnificent scenery, but also sample beer at one of the world’s oldest breweries in Regensburg, explore powerful WWII history in Nuremberg, experience a private concert featuring the works of Strauss and Mozart in the splendor of the Palais Liechtenstein, and much more. Go Next

Let the picturesque Amalfi Coast enchant you; embrace the youthful culture of Catania; see nature and history join together in Argostoli; wander the ancient walled city of Kotor; explore the magnificence of Diocletian’s Palace in Split; see the birthplace of Hippocrates in Kos; and lose yourself in the romance and mystery of Venice. Go Next

Classic Europe GRADUATION TRIP

Isle of Enchantment Cruise

National Parks & Lodges of the Old West

MAY 17–28, 2018

JUNE 7–18, 2018

JUNE 21–30, 2018

From the royal pageantry of London to the high style of Paris and the famous fountains of Rome, there is much to explore in these stunning world capitals.

Discover ancient Pompeii and the archeological treasures of fabled Athens.

Soak up the sunshine on the glamorous French Riviera and picturesque Greek isles. Europe’s most famous cities and fabulous beaches provide the setting for this amazing journey that educates and celebrates. AESU

Step into Victorian England in Newcastle. Get lost in Edinburgh’s medieval Old Town. The Vikings come to life at the Manx Museum in Douglas.

See the birthplace of the Titanic in Belfast. Indulge in the cultural feast that is Glasgow. Discover rock and roll history in Liverpool and hike the Welsh countryside in Holyhead. Go Next

Inspiration, a connection to the past, and nature’s beauty are the gifts of this 10-day American expedition. Tracing the historic paths and natural splendors of the Old West, see and learn about the storied sights and monuments of Badlands National Park, Custer State Park, Spearfish Canyon, Yellowstone National Park and Grand Teton National Park. Witness bison herds, savor a chuck wagon cookout and see Mount Rushmore. Orbridge

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Nordic Magnificence

Vistas and Glaciers Big 12 Cruise HOSTED BY LARRY REECE

JUNE 24–JULY 4, 2018 Join us on a remarkable journey to explore the natural beauty and heritage of Denmark and Norway. Explore Copenhagen. Marvel at royal castles and stroll through the Old Town. Cruise overnight to Oslo. Learn of Norway’s Viking past and admire the country’s majestic scenery. Travel on the picturesque Bergen railway, and cruise on the magnificent Sognefjord. AHI

Breathtaking BordeauxScenic River Cruise

JULY 13–23, 2018 Stand in awe of massive glaciers and all-enveloping scenery as you cruise up the Alaskan coast. Explore Alaska’s breathtaking natural beauty, unique native culture, abundant wildlife, and more on this 10-day trip starting and ending in Seattle. Go Next

Polar Bears & The Majestic Beluga Whales Great Lakes Cruise

JULY 16–24, 2018

AUGUST 8-14, 2018

AUGUST 14-23, 2018

On this luxury cruise around the Bordeaux region, you’ll have the opportunity to not only taste some of the world’s greatest wines, but also explore the underground catacombs in Saint-Émilion, tour the Château de Roquetaillade in Cadillac, and much more in our unforgettable, all-inclusive experiences. Go Next

Head north and discover the beauty and wildness of Churchill, Manitoba.

Known as the “Polar Bear Capital of the World,” this small town sits on the banks of the Hudson Bay and is famous for these majestic animals. In summer, they share the area with more than 60,000 beluga whales. Come and see this annual exhibition that can only be found here in the Canadian north. Orbridge

Unwind in idyllic Mackinac Island.

Traverse the legendary Soo Locks in Sault Ste. Marie. Explore native traditions in Manitoulin Island. See pioneer days brought to life at Midland’s living museum. Dive — or drive — into automotive history in Detroit and see Niagara Falls up close and personal from the thrilling perspective of a Hornblower vessel. Go Next

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Autumn Inspiration Cruise

The Wonders of Peru with an Amazon Cruise

SEPTEMBER 8-16, 2018

SEPTEMBER 13-23, 2018

SEPTEMBER 30-OCTOBER 11, 2018

Experience the true essence of life in northern Italy’s fabled Lake District for one full week, with charming accommodations in the Palace Hotel in the heart of Como. Enjoy private lake cruises on Como, Maggiore and Orta and excursions to Bellagio, Villa del Balbianello, the Borromean Islands and Milan with a Verona/Venice post-program option.

Gohagan

Explore the only walled city in North America, Québec City. Revel in Saguenay’s astounding natural beauty.

Sail the magnificent archipelago of Sept-Îles and the Gulf of Lawrence.

Embrace tradition in Halifax, marvel at Saint John’s Reversing Falls and admire the awe-inspiring Acadia National Park.

Immerse into the history of Boston and relax in Newport. Go Next

Immerse yourself in Peru’s wonders.

See Lima’s highlights and then experience a three-night Amazon cruise. Enjoy a rain forest hike. In the Andes, explore ethereal Machu Picchu with a guide. This 10-night journey features free economy airfare, round-trip between Miami, Florida and Lima; expert local guides; a travel director; and generous meals with wine at dinner. AHI

Italian Lakes

Ancient Vignettes Cruise

Blues to Holiday Country: Markets America’s Music WITH AMERICAN QUEEN STEAMBOAT COMPANY

OCTOBER 3-14, 2018

NOVEMBER 4-12, 2018

NOVEMBER 27-DECEMBER 5, 2018

Hike through picturesque Provençal France; admire Renaissance masterpieces in Florence; marvel at Michelangelo’s breathtaking Sistine Chapel in Rome and learn the secrets of the Sirens in Sorrento. Experience uniquely Sicilian culture in Messina and immerse yourself in the city of Valletta, the small but significant capital of Malta.

Lounge on the black sand beaches of Santorini and explore the walled city of Rhodes. Go Next

Discover America’s musical roots on this weeklong riverboating experience through Tennessee, Missouri and Kentucky. Dance to the blues in Memphis; hear haunting Civil War hymns in Dover; walk in the shadows of jazz greats in Paducah; and learn why Nashville is the Country Music Capital of the World. Go Next

Travel from Cologne to Nuremberg.

Delight in Germany’s merry Christkindlmarkets on a seven-night, first-class cruise along the Rhine and Main Rivers.

See Cologne’s cathedral, sail the Rhine Gorge, and admire medieval Miltenberg and Rothenburg. Visit Koblenz, Würzburg, Bamberg and Nuremberg.

Enjoy a choice of excursions in several ports, lectures and ample meals. For solo travelers, the single supplement is waived. AHI

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The Oklahoma State University Center for Health Sciences has a new, state-of-the-art simulation training facility that will revolutionize medical training in Oklahoma. The 84,000-square-foot A.R. and Marylouise Tandy Medical Academic Building will house a hospital simulation center that will be second to none. This training facility is named in honor of the A.R. and Marylouise Tandy Foundation to recognize its magnanimous $8 million contribution. More than $11 million has been generated to date from 130 private donors to underwrite this transformative capital project.

President Kayse Shrum, D.O., and the OSU Center for Health Sciences leadership team, faculty, staff and 1,000-plus students would like to express their sincerest appreciation to all the Tandy donors for investing in OSUCHS and for helping OSU-CHS train the very best physicians for Oklahoma.

Thank you, A.R. and Marylouise Tandy Medical Academic Building donors, for investing in the next generation of health care leaders.

Major Donors as of July 14, 2017

A.R. and Marylouise Tandy Foundation The Anne & Henry Zarrow Foundation Morningcrest Healthcare Foundation Osteopathic Founders Foundation Elizabeth and Jim Melton, D.O. Timothy C. Headington The Hon. Terry and Jeanette Kern Pedigo Products, Inc. Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Oklahoma Class of 1988 Class of 1983 Kevin Conatser, D.O. Jean and Gary Goodnight, D.O. RJ Langerman Sr., D.O., and RJ Langerman Jr., D.O. April Smith Penelope and Nabil Srouji, M.D. Class of 1979 Class of 1987 Class of 1978 Mallory Spoor-Baker, D.O., and Damon L. Baker, D.O. Justin Chronister, D.O., and Stacy Chronister, D.O. Walli and Bobby Daniel, D.O. Beverly and Richard Schafer, D.O. Class of 1981 Richard C. Staab, D.O., Memorial Symposium Class of 1985 Marnie and William J. Pettit, D.O. Tammie L. Koehler, D.O., and Duane G. Koehler, D.O.

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