The Mewbourne College of Earth and Energy and the University of Oklahoma is remembering the life and legacy of Curtis W. Mewbourne, who died today, June 23, 2022. The loyal OU alumnus and namesake of the Mewbourne College of Earth and Energy and the Mewbourne School of Petroleum and Geological Engineering left a mark on the lives of the students he supported, faculty he championed and university he loved.
While studying at OU, Mr. Mewbourne was an active student in petroleum engineering organizations and a member of Phi Gamma Delta – even playing on the fraternity’s championship basketball team.
Mr. Mewbourne graduated from OU with a degree in petroleum engineering in 1958 and then served as an officer in the U.S. Army. After gaining experience in several areas of the oil and gas industry, he founded Mewbourne Oil Company in 1965. Over the coming decades, he would transform his company into one of the most successful privately-owned oil and gas producers in America.
Even amid the energy industry’s ups and downs, Mr. Mewbourne made it his mission to consistently equip and encourage OU’s petroleum engineering and geoscience students, faculty and staff.
In 1982 he endowed the Mewbourne Professorship in Petroleum Engineering. As of 2022, there are six Mewbourne Professorships in Petroleum Engineering as well as the Curtis Mewbourne Professorship, each of which underwrites the research and teaching activities of a petroleum engineering professor.
His endowments include the Mewbourne Enrichment Fund, which benefits undergraduate students and inspires faculty and staff to provide excellence in teaching. He also endowed the Mewbourne Leadership Scholars Program, which provides annual scholarships for entering freshmen and continues to support them through graduation. His most recent gift created the college’s Faculty Support Endowment.
In recognition of his longtime support, the University of Oklahoma named the Mewbourne School of Petroleum and Geological Engineering in his honor in May of 2000, and granted him the Honorary Degree of Doctor of Humane Letters in 2002.
On Nov. 2, 2007, the Mewbourne College of Earth and Energy was named in his honor, and he was bestowed the college’s Trailblazer Award for his professional achievements and lifetime commitment to the energy industry.
A statue forever memorializing Mr. Mewbourne with his loyal dog, Rebel, proudly stands at the entrance to Sarkeys Energy Center – the home of Mewbourne College of Earth and Energy – where it welcomes all who enter to learn, to dream, and to make the world a better place.
Decades of faculty and students alike have stories of Mr. Mewbourne’s generosity, intentionality, and genuine desire to encourage the future generations of the energy industry. Whether purchasing the only SEM microscope used by undergraduate petroleum engineering students in the nation or learning how new desks could contribute to a better classroom environment, Mr. Mewbourne was unwavering in his love for OU.
In the last 25 years, Mewbourne Oil Company has been the largest supporter of student scholarships and internships at OU.
The best way to remember Curtis Mewbourne and celebrate his legacy at the university is through his own words. On Feb. 11, 2000, he gave a speech to OU students at the Petroleum and Geological Engineering Distinguished Scholars Banquet. His words, his legacy and his dreams for Mewbourne College of Earth and Energy will live on.
Mewbourne College is collecting stories, anecdotes and memories about the many ways Mr. Mewbourne's philanthropy, leadership and friendship impacted all of us. You can submit your contributions here.
