Holders commit $1 million for chair to support new business school entrepreneurship program
Friday, July 11, 2008
OSU VP of athletics, wife were inspired by Mitchell gift
View Full List of Endowed Faculty Chair Announcements
Holder is OSU’s Vice President of Athletic Programs and Intercollegiate Athletics
and he received both his undergraduate degree in marketing in 1971 and his MBA in
1973 from OSU. The gift will create the Mike and Robbie Holder Chair in Entrepreneurship
located within the Spears School of Business.
“The response from our alumni and friends has exceeded our wildest expectations and
we applaud Mike and Robbie on this generous gift,” said OSU President Burns Hargis.
“Mike has made a lasting impact on OSU athletics and we sincerely appreciate him and
Robbie stepping forward to support our new entrepreneurship program in such a significant
way.”
In order to take full advantage of the state’s dollar-for-dollar match, and make the
most significant impact on OSU academics, the Holders made the gift prior to the July
1 change in the state’s endowed chair matching program. This gift is part of the
$66.8 million in endowed faculty gifts OSU announced recently.
“Robbie and I made the gift to the college of business because of Malone & Amy Mitchell.
Having two degrees in business was the icing on the cake,” said Mike. “I would like
to see this new program become nationally recognized and make a difference in the
lives of young people.”
OSU alumni Malone and Amy Mitchell committed $28.6 million to create the Riata Center
for Entrepreneurship on June 26.
Jean Van Delinder, chair of the OSU Faculty Council, said, “OSU is poised for growth
and further prominence but to realize its full potential we must continue to attract
and retain top scholars and researchers. These chairs highlight the important role
that scholarship and teaching play at Oklahoma State University, and they are made
possible through the generous support of donors who value excellence in scholarship
and want to help OSU continue to nurture a strong faculty.”
Endowed professorships and chairs are academic designations which provide support
for faculty salary, graduate assistantships, equipment and research needs, as well
as other support. These endowed faculty positions allow a university to attract and
retain the best and the brightest academic minds in the world.