OU Receives Major Gift from Valero in Support of New Engineering Facility

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University of Oklahoma President David L. Boren today announced a $1.5 million gift from Valero to support construction of Gallogly Hall, a new biomedical engineering building and research laboratory on OU’s Engineering Quadrangle that will house the Gallogly College of Engineering’s Stephenson School of Biomedical Engineering and new engineering labs and learning spaces. The announcement was made at the June meeting of the OU Board of Regents.

“The university deeply appreciates this generous gift from Valero to such an important new academic facility and program,” Boren said.

In appreciation of the gift, Boren has recommended to the OU Board of Regents that the new building’s lecture hall, which will be prominently located on the first floor, be named to honor Valero.

The Valero Lecture Hall will be a reconfigurable multipurpose space that may also be used as a classroom or a space to host special events. The lecture hall will easily accommodate up to 100 people and will be equipped with advanced audiovisual equipment, including 70-inch display panels, projection screens and extensive internet accessibility.

“As an OU Alumnus, I am especially proud for Valero to support the new lecture hall which will be used by students and faculty at the University of Oklahoma,” said Lane Riggs, Executive Vice President – Refining Operations and Engineering. “Valero appreciates the opportunity to assist the university in providing world class facilities for its engineering students.”

Gallogly Hall, which is set to open in fall 2019, will be home to the new Stephenson School of Biomedical Engineering. The 70,000-square-foot facility will feature classrooms, teaching and research labs, a lecture hall, collaborative learning spaces and a student project-making space. This world-class academic building and the Gallogly College of Engineering are named in honor of the leadership gift made to the college from Janet and Jim Gallogly of Houston in 2015. The School of Biomedical Engineering is named for Peggy and Charles Stephenson of Tulsa, whose resources are helping put OU in the forefront of the growing field of biomedical engineering. The school will enhance diversity in both the student and faculty ranks, increase enrollment and federal research funding and spur economic growth. It also will aid in the recruitment of top students and strengthen collaboration among OU’s three campuses.

Academic programs within the Gallogly College of Engineering’s eight areas of study are consistently ranked in the top third of engineering programs in the United States. For more information about the college, visit http://ou.edu/coehttp://ou.edu/coe/.

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