The University of Oklahoma Class of 2014 will celebrate their time at OU by establishing a scholarship to be awarded to future generations of Sooners. The gifts raised from the Class of 2014 will be matched by funding from the OU Alumni Association to establish an endowed scholarship to be awarded annually to an incoming freshman.
Class of 2014 members have raised approximately $7,000 toward the scholarship fund.
In announcing the Class of 2014 gift, Senior Class Gift Committee representative Tyler Campbell said, “The scholarship reflects a value that’s been ingrained in us during our time here at OU: invest in others. With growing financial constraints placed on students, our class felt a scholarship was the best avenue through which we could invest in a community that has provided so much to us.
“The scholarship will be awarded every year to a student who demonstrates a strong academic record, leadership potential and an aptitude for affecting change in his or her community. The Class of 2014 is excited to provide an annual scholarship to help Sooners pursue their educational goals for generations to come.”
Since 1906, OU students have left behind a special gift to the campus and all the students who follow in their footsteps.
Over the years, class gifts have created such campus monuments as the Cherokee Gothic arches that welcome visitors to Parrington Oval and the Asp Avenue, Elm Avenue and Brooks Street entrances and the Centennial Arches, a 100th birthday gift to OU from the Class of 1990, which stand sentinel at the entrance of Van Vleet Oval; the OU Reflecting Pool at The Gaylord Family – Oklahoma Memorial Stadium, originally a gift of the Class of 1934 and revived by the classes of 1960 and 2000; and the fountain and pool between Oklahoma Memorial Union and Monnet Hall, a gift of the Class of 1935.
Other class gifts include Reunion Park (classes of 1948 and 1949), located on the corner of Boyd Street and College Avenue; the Spoonholder, located in the center of Parrington Oval, which was originally a gift of the Class of 1910 and was rebuilt as a joint effort between the classes of 1949 and 1999; the Seed Sower Seal (Class of 1998), completed by artist-in-residence Paul Moore and located on Stuart Landing of Oklahoma Memorial Union; “The Guardian” sculpture (Class of 2002), designed by American Indian artist Enoch Kelly Haney; the American Flag Plaza, located north of The Gaylord Family – Oklahoma Memorial Stadium (Class of 2004); and a historic-style exterior clock (Class of 2005), between the Adams and Walker towers, among others. The Class of 2008 gave a custom sundial, placed on the North Oval between the Carnegie building and Monnet Hall to replace the original campus sundial. The Class of 2008 also helped repair the damage to OU’s landscape from the ice storm of December 2007 by joining the Reforestation Campaign.
From 2009 to 2012, the class gifts were a series of stained-glass windows in Oklahoma Memorial Union. The Class of 2013 celebrated their time at OU with a brick and stone sign reading “The University of Oklahoma,” placed at the corner of Highway 9 and Chautauqua Avenue – the south entrance to campus.
Seniors still may contribute via cash or check, or charge their bursar’s account. For information on giving opportunities for the class gift, contact Courtlyn Shoate, staff adviser to the OU Student Alumni Association, at (405) 325-1710 or courtlyn@ou.edu.
