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

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(STILLWATER, Ok. July 11, 2008) -- Oklahoma State University has announced a $1 million gift from Stillwater residents Mike and Robbie Holder to create an entrepreneurship super chair at OSU. Once fully matched dollar-for-dollar by T. Boone Pickens’ $100 million chair match commitment, as well as the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education, the gift will have the impact of $4 million in endowed funds.
 
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.