Oklahoma State University is my alma mater. Its location in Stillwater, Oklahoma, is where I grew up. I arrived there at three months old with my professor father and housewife mother in 1950 when it was still known as Oklahoma A&M. It was an idyllic childhood filled with backyard birthday parties, playing outside with friends until sunset and bicycling to school. I continued to live at home and ride a bicycle to campus when I began as a freshman at OSU. It was only a few blocks away. In the summer when there were very few students on campus, I used to walk down the deserted streets pretending I was the last person on earth.
History
According to Wikipedia, during World War II, town leaders’ aim was to convert Oklahoma A&M into a war training center. They succeeded in creating 12 training units that involved bringing nearly 40,000 service men and women to Stillwater. The Women's Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service or WAVES was the largest with 10,000 participants. Quonset huts were dotted across town. Later, those same quonset huts became married student housing where I lived with my parents. We outgrew the hut, and eventually moved to two more houses as our family added my two sisters, Barbara and Julie.
On December 25, 1890, the Oklahoma Territorial Legislature finally gained approval for Oklahoma Territorial Agricultural and Mechanical (A&M) College, the land-grant university established under the Morrill Act of 1862 that allowed for the creation of land-grant colleges in U.S. states using the proceeds of federal land sales. It specified that the college was to be within Payne County. Such an ambiguous description created rivalry between towns within the county, with Stillwater ultimately winning out. Upon statehood in 1907, "Territorial" was dropped from its title.
The first students assembled for class on December 14, 1891. Classes were held for two and one-half years in local churches until the first academic building, later known as Old Central, was dedicated on June 15, 1894, on the southeast corner of campus, which at the time was flat plowed prairie. In 1896, Oklahoma A&M held its first commencement with six male graduates. The first library was established in Old Central in one room shared with the English Department. The first campus building to have electricity, Williams Hall, was constructed in 1900. With its turreted architecture it was referred to as the "Castle of the Prairies;" it remained standing until 1969. One of the earliest campus buildings was also a barn, used as part of an agricultural experiment station, which was served by a large reservoir pond created in 1895. The barn burned in 1922, but the pond — enlarged and remodeled in 1928 and 1943 — is now known as Theta Pond, a popular campus scenic landmark. In 1906, Morrill Hall was completed and became the principal building on campus. A fire gutted the building in 1914, but the outside structure survived intact, and the interior was reconstructed.
On-campus housing at Oklahoma A&M College began in 1910, with the opening of the Boy's Dormitory. Later renamed Crutchfield Hall, the Historic American Buildings Survey said it was significant as "... the first permanent boy's dormitory in Oklahoma ... [and] the sole surviving example of a pre-1930 utilitarian dormitory that is characteristic of modified Italian Renaissance Revival architecture." Crutchfield Hall later served the School of Music and the College of Engineering, Architecture, and Technology before its demolition in 1955. Also opened in 1910 was the Women's Building, containing a dining hall, home economics classes, and a women's gymnasium, in addition to resident housing for female students. It was later named Garner Hall and survives to the present day as the Bartlett Center for the Studio Arts and houses the Gardiner Art Gallery. By 1919 the campus included Morrill Hall, Central Building, Engineering Building — now Gundersen Hall, Women's Building, Auditorium — replaced later by the Seretean Center for Performing Arts, Armory-Gymnasium — now the Architecture Building and the Power Plant.
At the beginning of World War II, Oklahoma A&M was one of six schools selected by the United States Navy to give the Primary School in the Electronics Training Program, also known as Naval Training School Elementary Electricity and Radio Materiel. Starting in March 1942, each month a new group of 100 Navy students arrived for three months of 14-hour days in concentrated electrical engineering study. Cordell Hall, the newest dormitory, was used for housing and meals; lectures and lab sessions were held in the Engineering Building. Professor Emory B. Phillips was the Director of Instruction. ETP admission required passing the Eddy Test, one of the most selective qualifying exams given during the war years. At a given time, some 500 Navy students were on the campus, a significant fraction of the war-years enrollment. The training activity continued until June 1945 and served a total of about 7,000 students; among these was Robert B. Kamm, a future professor and president of Oklahoma State University.
Much of the growth of Oklahoma A&M and the campus architectural integrity can be attributed to work of Henry G. Bennett, who served as the school's president from 1928 to 1950. Early in his tenure Dr. Bennett developed a strategic vision for the physical expansion of the university campus. The plan was adopted in 1937 and his vision was followed for more than 50 years, making the university what it is today, including the Georgian architecture that permeates the campus. The focal point of his vision was a centrally located library building, which became a reality when the Edmon Low Library opened in 1953. Another major addition to the campus during the Bennett years was the construction of the Student Union, which opened in 1950. Subsequent additions and renovations have made the building one of the largest student union buildings in the world at 611,000 sq. ft. A complete renovation and further expansion of the building began in 2010.
On May 15, 1957, Oklahoma A&M changed its name to the Oklahoma State University of Agricultural and Applied Sciences to reflect the broadening scope of curriculum offered. Oklahoma Gov. Raymond Gary signed the bill authorizing the name change passed by the 26th Oklahoma Legislature on May 15, 1957. However, the bill only authorized the Board of Regents to change the name of the college, a measure they voted on at their meeting on June 6. However, the name was quickly shortened to Oklahoma State University for most purposes, and the "Agricultural & Applied Sciences" name was formally dropped in 1980. Subsequently, the Oklahoma State University System was created, with the Stillwater campus as the flagship institution and several outlying branches: OSU-Institute of Technology in Okmulgee in 1946, OSU-Oklahoma City in 1961, OSU-Tulsa in 1984 and the Center for Health Sciences in Tulsa in 1988.
In 2006, OSU became the recipient of a gift of $165 million from alumnus T. Boone Pickens to the university's athletic department, and in 2008 received another gift from Pickens of $100 million for endowed academic chairs. It was the largest gift for academics ever given in the state. Ethical concerns have been raised in media reports about the propriety of how some of the Pickens gifts have been made, immediately returned to Pickens, and then placed in hedge funds owned by Pickens' companies. In February 2010, Pickens announced that he was pledging another $100 million to fund a scholarship endowment as part of a $1 billion fund-raising campaign titled "Branding Success." The pledge brought the total pledged or contributed to OSU by Pickens to over $500 million.
On October 24, 2015 during the annual homecoming parade, 26-year-old Adacia Chambers drove her vehicle into a crowd of people killing 4 people and injuring 47. She said she was suffering from psychosis that day, pleaded no contest and was sentenced to life in prison.
Rankings and reputation
OSU's Homecoming was awarded the Council for Advancement and Support of Education Seal of Excellence. Presented each year by the Oklahoma State University Alumni Association, "America's Greatest Homecoming Celebration" began in 1913 and today draws more than 70,000 alumni and fans back to Stillwater for events like the Harvest Carnival, Walkaround and Sea of Orange Parade. It is widely regarded as one of the best homecoming celebrations in the U.S.
Each year the School of Entrepreneurship hosts the "Experiential Classroom," an intensive three-day seminar for entrepreneurship educators. It has been widely recognized as being the top program of its kind. In 2011, the program hosted entrepreneurship faculty from 29 states, 17 countries and 65 different universities.
It has been named a Truman Honor Institution for its success in producing Truman scholars, the premier graduate fellowship in the U.S. for public service leadership.
OSU is one of five U.S. universities where Sun Grant Research Initiative programs have been established by the U.S. Congress in the Sun Grant Research Initiative Act of 2003 for the purposes of researching and developing sustainable and environmentally friendly, bio-based energy alternatives.
The Math Department has been recognized by the American Mathematics Association as one of four innovative programs in the nation and has produced four Sloan Fellowship winners.
The Oklahoma Mesonet, a state-of-the-art network of environmental monitoring stations that is an Oklahoma University-Oklahoma State University partnership, won a special award from the American Meteorological Society, the nation's leading professional society for those in the atmospheric and related sciences at the National Weather Center.
OSU is headquarters for the International Ground Source Heat Pump Association, which has members from as far away as Sweden, Japan, Australia, England and South Africa.
OSU is home to Fire Protection Publications and the International Fire Service Training Association, the largest publisher of fire and emergency services books in North America.
Since 2010, OSU has hosted SpeedFest, a collegiate and high school unmanned systems competition held annually in April at the OSU Unmanned Aircraft Flight Station. Originally focused on remote control aircraft design and flight demonstration only, the event has recently expanded to include autonomous ground vehicles. It typically attracts around 1,000 spectators.
OSU is home to the Unmanned Systems Research Institute which focuses on autonomous systems research, particularly unmanned aircraft. The campus-wide institute was created in 2015. In addition to STEM and outreach, USRI serves the campus and statewide unmanned aircraft systems needs. Along with counter-UAS projects, high profile activities include using unmanned aircraft for advanced weather observations. The institute has led several large national efforts, including National Science Foundation and National Aeronautics and Space Administration University Leadership Initiative programs, in this area.
Athletics history and tradition
Oklahoma A&M’s teams were known for many years as either the Tigers or as the Aggies. However, in 1923, A&M was looking for a new mascot to replace its pet tiger, the inspiration behind the school colors of orange and black. A group of students saw Frank Eaton leading the Armistice Day parade. He was approached to see if he would be interested in being the model for the new mascot, and he agreed. The caricature, Pistol Pete, that was drawn that year is more or less the same as the one that is still in use.
Only a few decades removed from the cattle era, the cowboy was still an important figure in the Southwest. The new mascot had become so popular that by 1924, Charles Saulsberry, sports editor of The Oklahoma Times, began calling A&M's teams the Cowboys. "Aggies" and "Cowboys" were used interchangeably until A&M was elevated to university status in 1957.
Notable among a number of songs commonly played and sung at various events such as commencement, convocation and athletic games are: The Waving Song, Ride 'Em Cowboys — the Oklahoma State University fight song and the OSU Chant. At the end of every sporting event, win or lose, OSU student-athletes face the student section and sing the alma mater along with other students, faculty, alumni and staff.
Athletics statistics
OSU is in Division 1-A of the NCAA and in the Big 12 Conference. It major rival is the Oklahoma University Sooners. Its minor rivals are the University of Texas Longhorns, University of Kansas Jayhawks and Iowa State University Cyclones — wrestling. It has won 52 NCAA titles and is No. 4 after Stanford, USC and UCLA. The football team has won 10 conference titles and played in 26 bowls games. Barry Sanders is the 1988 Heisman Trophy winner. In basketball, Oklahoma State made the Final Four in 1995 and 2004 and was the first ever Division 1 basketball program to win back-to-back National Championships in 1945-1946. The Cowboy wrestling team brought home their 33rd NCAA championship in spring 2005, scoring the most points ever by an Oklahoma State wrestling team in the NCAA. OSU won their 34th overall — and 4th consecutive — title in 2006. OSU's 34 team titles are the most ever collected by a school in one sport. The Cowboys have also produced 127 individual national champions, including the sport's first-ever four-time champion, Pat Smith. Since the 1924 Olympics, 68 Oklahoma State University Olympians have won a total of 30 medals: 21 gold, four silver, and five bronze.
Faculty
A number of prominent scholars, authors and researchers have served on the OSU faculty, including poet Ai who won the 1999 National Book Award for Poetry, historian Angie Debo, literary critic and author Brian Evenson, mathematician William Jaco, computer scientist and philosopher Subhash Kak, chemical engineering scholar Nicholas A. Kotov, information studies pioneer and research librarian Edmond Low, engineering pioneer J. Tinsley Oden and highly cited psychologist Robert Sternberg — who now teaches at Cornell University.
Athletic alumni
Coaching alumni include OSU wrestling head coach John Smith, OSU football head coach Mike Gundy, and former OSU basketball coaches Eddie Sutton and Sean Sutton. The Cowboys have produced several NBA players, including Desmond Mason, formerly of the Oklahoma City Thunder, Marcus Smart of the Boston Celtics, Jawun Evans of the Los Angeles Clippers, Tony Allen of the New Orleans Pelicans, James Anderson of the Sacramento Kings, Joey Graham of the Cleveland Cavaliers, Stephen Graham of the New Jersey Nets, JamesOn Curry of the Chicago Bulls, Terrel Harris of the Miami Heat and former New York Knicks guard John Starks. NFL players Barry Sanders and Thurman Thomas also attended OSU, as did baseball All-Star pitcher Joe Jorlen and All-Star third baseman Robin Ventura. Ventura went on to manage the Chicago White Sox for five seasons. Also in the NFL are former Cowboys Dez Bryant and Dan Bailey of the Dallas Cowboys, and Kevin Williams of the Minnesota Vikings. Retired MMA and UFC Hall of Famers Randy Couture and Don Frye, and former UFC welterweight champion Johny Hendricks wrestled at OSU. Former UFC light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier wrestled at the university, as well as other MMA fighters including Mark Muñoz. PGA professional golfers Rickie Fowler, Scott Verplank, Bo Van Pelt, Charles Howell III, Bob Tway and Hunter Mahan also attended OSU. Two-time gold medalist, ESPN analyst and ASA Hall of Fame inductee Michele Mary Smith played softball at OSU. Houston Nutt and Brent Guy, both former players and teammates, became head coaches after serving as assistants for the Cowboy football program.
Other famous alumni
Today, there are more than 200,000 living OSU alumni worldwide. Prominent alumni include oil tycoon and billionaire philanthropist T. Boone Pickens, actor James Marsden, "the father of the personal computer" Ed Roberts, country singers Garth Brooks and Hoyt Axton, former Prime Minister of South Korea Nam Duck-woo, former Prime Minister of Jordan Adnan Badran, U.S. Senator Tom Coburn, former Governor of Oklahoma Mary Fallin, former acting Surgeon General of the United States Robert A. Whitney, Oklahoma Supreme Court Justice Steven W. Taylor, David Noel Ramirez Padilla — rector of Tecnológico de Monterrey which is Mexico's most prestigious university, former Central Bank of Somalia Governor Yussur A.F. Abrar, production designer and drummer K.K. Barrett, legal scholar Anita Hill and Ponnala Lakshmaiah, an Indian politician. Interviews with OSU Alumni can be viewed and heard through the O-State Stories Project of the Oklahoma Oral History Research Program.
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