Funding to OU comes through many means Shell gives back to aid several university programs By Julianna Parker Published in the Norman Transcript on December 24, 2008 
(From left to right: Michael Linse – Senior Petroleum Engineering major, Emmitt Moser – Petroleum Engineering major, Jennifer Johnson, Junior Chemical Engineering major, Jalon Debbs – Project Controls Engineer and representative for Shell Oil in Houston, Sohini Sur – PhD student from Geology & Geophysics, Matt Zechmeister, PhD student from Geology & Geophysics ) It's a symbiotic relationship. At college, students are prepared to enter a profession. Students are focused on getting jobs when they graduate, but the cards aren't all stacked against them. Employers also want well-trained entry-level workers. Some employers choose to reach out to their future employees while they're still in school. One such company is Shell Corporation. Shell donates a sizable chunk of cash to the University of Oklahoma's engineering, geology and business programs every year, and also recruits students for internships and full-time jobs. Friday, a representative visited OU to present a donation from Shell in the amount of $110,250. "It most directly impacts the undergraduate students," said Tom Landers, dean of the College of Engineering. He thanked Jalon T. Debbs, project controls engineer and representative for Shell Oil in Houston, for taking an interest in OU students. The money will pay for student activities such as academic competitions, scholarships and professional development. It'll be split across several programs, including the Schools of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering, Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, Petroleum Engineering and Geological Sciences and Geology and Geophysics; the Colleges of Business, Atmospheric and Geographic Sciences and Engineering; and the Minority Engineering Program. Many of the oil and gas companies who give to OU (Devon, ExxonMobile and Shell, among others) do so because alumni work in their leadership. "Our graduates have given so much back to the university," said Chandra S. Rai, director of the Mewbourne School of Petroleum and Geological Engineering. A good example is the Mewbourne Oil Company, Rai said, for which his school is named. The owner is an OU alumnus who has financially supported many areas of the university over the years. Mewbourne gave $3 million to create a state-of-the-art lab for undergraduates. The lab trains students better and also attracts higher quality students to the school, Rai said. Rai himself is in a research consortium that recently benefited from an unrestricted research grant from Shell. At a luncheon where a representative from Shell presented a check to OU, faculty and students told about all the areas benefiting from Shell's gifts. In the School of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering, director S.R. Gollahalli said the money funds the robotics competition members of the student chapter of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers attend each year. "It certainly makes our students well-rounded engineers," he said. The money from Shell also has funded senior capstone projects. Students visit Shell labs, do real projects and then some are recruited by Shell for jobs post-graduation, Gollahalli said. In addition to providing Shell with well-trained employees and students with professional opportunities, the financial gift from Shell also helps OU. Director of the School of Geology and Geophysics Doug Elmore said money from Shell pays for fellowships for graduate students in his school. That allows OU to recruit better students by paying them more for attending OU, he said. "We are in a very stiff competition with other schools around the country" for quality students, Elmore said. Sohini Sur, a Ph.D. student in Geology and Geophysics, is one of the recipients of the Shell fellowship. She also interned with Shell during her time at OU. She said she'll be joining Shell in March after completion of her Ph.D. At the check presentation luncheon this past week, Debbs was interested in at which office Sur would work. When Sur said the Houston office, Debbs excitedly told her that was where he worked. He told her to give him a call once she got there so he could ease her transition into the workforce in any way possible. Debbs' offer of help was more than just lip service, he said. And that openness underscored another key aspect of Shell's relationship with OU. Shell provides more than just money, OU faculty, staff and students said at the luncheon. It's the time Debbs has spent on campus that really helps students, said Liz Cook with OU's Minority Engineering Program. "Our students see you as a mentor," she told Debbs. "As soon as I say Shell they say, 'Is Jalon coming?'" Cook said. Debbs said his most prized role was one of mentoring young people. "I want to come in and get to know the students," he said. He said he came to college on an athletic scholarship, but used that to get his degree in petroleum engineering and make something of himself. He promised himself that he would help other students do the same. And even if students don't choose to work for Shell, Debbs said he still wants the same thing for them wherever they end up: success. "I'm a mentor," he said. "I want to help you succeed in corporate America.
