Outstanding Young Alumni Q&A: Aaron Sizemore

Monday, September 8, 2025

Media Contact: Hallie Hart | Communications Coordinator | 405-744-1050 | hallie.hart@okstate.edu

Editor's note: The Spears School of Business is releasing a series of feature stories to celebrate the 2025 Spears Business Hall of Fame inductees and Outstanding Young Alumni before their Oct. 10 ceremony. Previous profiles highlighted Craig Boelte, Dr. Lee Manzer, Suzanne Wade and Lucas Elwell. 

College students often hear the recommendation, “Sit in the front row of class to focus and stand out to your professors.”

Spears School of Business graduate Aaron Sizemore has a different reason to believe in that advice.

When he stepped into a nearly full room on the first day of his statistics class at Oklahoma State University, his only option was a front-row seat. Sizemore sat next to a stranger, a fellow junior named Brittany Fiss.

Today, the financial leader can’t imagine his life without his alma mater, largely because he and Brittany are married with two children.

“The truth is that OSU has given me everything: my family, my career, my friends,” Sizemore said.

He can now add a meaningful honor to that list.

Aaron and Brittany Sizemore are two of three Spears Business Outstanding Young Alumni this year. They will receive their awards at the Oct. 10 Spears Business Hall of Fame banquet in the ConocoPhillips OSU Alumni Center.

Aaron, a 2008 finance graduate from Tulsa, is managing director and head of national energy finance at East West Bank, while Brittany is a vice president at ISN. Although the Sizemores live in Dallas, they remain closely connected to OSU.

Q: What led you to OSU out of high school?

Aaron Sizemore: I was lucky enough to grow up in an OSU household. Both my mom and dad attended OSU, so it was an easy decision for me. I looked at a couple of other schools but ultimately decided OSU was where I wanted to be.

How important was OSU to your family?

Growing up, it was instilled in me from an early age that I was definitely of the orange variety in the state of Oklahoma. Every Saturday, the Pokes were on TV. Any basketball games, especially during the Eddie Sutton era. I can remember my dad — we’d sit down and watch the games — telling me why Eddie Sutton was the best coach and why we’re going to win. That really helped. We moved around a lot, so we didn’t get to make it back for many games in person, but we were always watching from wherever we were.

How did your experience at Spears Business and OSU impact your professional life?

Spears was such a great experience. The unique thing is it really prepares you for the corporate world. We did a number of different group projects that I can recall, especially in the upper-level finance courses, so you had to learn really quickly how to interact with people from different backgrounds and walks of life. That helps prepare you well for the corporate world because you don’t get to pick your co-workers, so that’s a skill that really separates people. You have to quickly find how to relate and figure out how to work with people to be successful.

Did you have a favorite class or professor?

I should probably say Money and Banking, given my current career. But I really enjoyed all of the upper-level finance courses. The nice thing, too, was getting to experience some of the electives such as entomology and geology, the science stuff that broke up the upper-level finance stuff. Across the board, Financial Markets and Institutions was a great one.

Outside class, what stands out about your time at OSU?

My time spent at the Sigma Nu house. It also gave me a chance to work on homecoming and be a part of America’s Greatest Homecoming. It left me with some of my best friends I know I’ll have for life.

Can you explain your work with Brighter Orange of North Texas, which raises scholarship funds for North Texans attending OSU?

When we moved to Dallas, Brighter Orange was a thing, but it was continuing to grow. We got involved pretty early. We started just attending and then looked for any ways we could help. It’s just been a fantastic organization. It’s really important because it’s providing scholarships for North Texas kids.

I don’t think it’s any secret that OSU is looking to Texas as far as enrollment goes. DFW is the fourth-largest metroplex in the country, and it’s only 4 ½ to five hours from Stillwater. It’s important for us, one, to try to give back to OSU, but then also get these kids introduced to OSU — because there’s a ton of talented and gifted kids here — and see if we can get them on their path to Stillwater.

Since meeting Brittany, how has your love for OSU carried through your family?

Naturally, it’s definitely made its way down to our kids. We have Julia; she’s 9, and Jack, he’s 5. They want to wear a Pistol Pete shirt every day they can, and I’m constantly told about the arguments they get into at school about why OSU is better than Texas or anybody else. (laughs) We’ve been lucky enough to bring them back to basketball games and football games, so they definitely bleed orange, even though they’re not even 10 yet.

The OSU community is just so special and so close. It’s a big school; it’s a very well-known school, but whenever you meet somebody who was an OSU grad, it’s an immediate connection, whether that be in business, socially, what have you. You can always tell when you meet somebody from OSU, and there’s always that immediate connection and that bond.

What advice would you give to an incoming or current student?

Especially as it relates to OSU, it’s important to leverage the resources that you have at your disposal. OSU has really done a great job. You’ve got the Eastin Center for Career Readiness. Take advantage of that, because they’re helping you write your resume, coach you on interviews and then really prepare you to hit the ground running. That might give you the edge in the interview, so I would really encourage everyone to research and take advantage of what’s at your disposal.

Also, especially when you’re going into your senior year, you’re ready to be done; you’re anxious, worrying about jobs and your career. But, take a breath because you’ve got decades to worry about the rest of your career, and you’ve only got about four special years in Stillwater. It’s important to slow down for a minute and just breathe and enjoy it while you can.

Story by Hallie Hart and Cole Weiberg, Multimedia Producer