$3M SBC Foundation Grant will fund major college transfer scholarship program

Thursday, May 12, 2005

At the State Capitol on Thursday, Oklahoma State University announced the SBC Foundation has given it $3 million to fund one of the largest college student transfer scholarship programs in Oklahoma and to support academic enhancement initiatives at OSU.

OSU System CEO and President David Schmidly said OSU expects to have more than 120 SBC/OSU Presidential Transfer Scholars enrolled this fall.

SBC Oklahoma President Don Cain presented Schmidly with the grant. He said that OSU and SBC “create a natural synergy that addresses head-on our state’s need to increase the number of residents with four-year college degrees to a level at or above the national average.”

“A better educated population means a stronger and more competitive Oklahoma,” Cain said. “Citizens with a bachelor’s degree or better will earn more over their lifetimes, be more productive citizens and contribute to a growing and prosperous economy.”

Schmidly said the grant is a major step forward in his President’s Opportunity Scholarship Trust campaign, which is raising $50 million for student scholarships. Schmidly announced the campaign shortly after his arrival at OSU in January 2003.  With the SBC grant, the OSU Foundation has received, on behalf of OSU, $37.4 million in scholarship gifts, pledges and deferred gifts. Of that total, $11.1 million is endowed. 

“In an era of rising educational costs, I think it is imperative that we do everything we can to help students with their educational expenses,” Schmidly said. “As Oklahoma’s land-grant university, we have an historical mission and a duty to continue providing opportunities and access to higher education at the comprehensive university level. SBC’s forward thinking and willingness to partner for such a noble cause will pay substantial dividends to Oklahoma students and the state for years to come.”