OSU names new Human Performance Innovation Complex to honor alum, fitness pioneer Pickens – Oklahoma State University

Tuesday, November 19, 2024

Media Contact:
Sydney Trainor | Communications and Media Relations Specialist | 405-744-9782 | sydney.trainor@okstate.edu

Celebration marks major milestone for Human Performance and Nutrition Research Institute

Oklahoma State University’s new Human Performance Innovation Complex will be named after the late T. Boone Pickens, a legendary businessman and mega-philanthropist. 

The complex’s name recognizes and honors Pickens, a beloved alumnus who has significantly
transformed OSU through nearly $650 million in donations. 

In June 2023, a $120 million legacy gift from the T. Boone Pickens Foundation to OSU
provided funding for student scholarships and $25 million for the OSU Human Performance
Innovation Complex. The complex, which will be located north of the Sherman E. Smith
Training Center, will house and support the work of OSU’s unique Human Performance and Nutrition Research Institute.

“The T. Boone Pickens Foundation’s allocation of $25 million for the innovation complex
marks a significant step toward establishing a world-class research institute on our
Stillwater campus next year aimed at improving the health and well-being of all Oklahomans,”
OSU President Kayse Shrum said. “And we are pleased that this one-of-a-kind complex
will bear the name of an American pioneer in corporate fitness — Boone Pickens.”

The institute will leverage research and experience from departments and colleges
around the OSU System, including the College of Education and Human Sciences; Ferguson
College of Agriculture; the College of Engineering, Architecture and Technology; the
Robert M. Kerr Food and Agricultural Products Center; the College of Osteopathic Medicine;
and the National Center for Wellness & Recovery in Tulsa.

The cross-disciplinary applied research approach is a key component of HPNRI and its
parent organization, The Innovation Foundation at OSU.

Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt praised the Pickens Foundation’s generosity and Pickens’
enduring legacy. 

“Boone Pickens was a great Oklahoman who loved his state and his university — Oklahoma
State. For decades, he preached the importance of physical fitness and its importance
for a strong workforce and healthy workplace. He faithfully and vigorously worked
out every morning at dawn, setting an example for all around him,” Stitt said. “While
wise to follow Boone’s example, I am optimistic the Boone Pickens Human Performance
Innovation Complex can play a large role in bringing about transformational change
in health outcomes for all Oklahomans. He would be proud of this development on the
OSU campus.”

Lance Walker, named the inaugural HPNRI Rick and Gail Muncrief executive director
in 2022, expressed gratitude for the Pickens Foundation’s support. 

“Boone Pickens understood the link between productivity, fitness and happiness,” Walker
said. “He started a trend in 1979 when he built a $2.5 million, 30,000-square-foot
fitness center at his company’s Mesa Petroleum headquarters in Amarillo, Texas, introducing
one of the first corporate wellness programs in the United States. Boone would tell
his Mesa employees that good health does not just happen but requires individual effort
and would warn that a person’s health would deteriorate without regular physical exercise.
Boone’s words are as real today as they were in 1979, and they will inspire the groundbreaking
initiatives in this complex named after him.”

Responding to the naming announcement, Jay Rosser, Pickens’ longtime head of public
affairs, noted how honored Pickens would be to have his name associated with a complex
and institute dedicated to promoting healthier lives.

“Boone was a lifelong health and fitness advocate,” Rosser said. “He championed the
phrase, ‘I don’t want to grow old and feel bad, and I don’t want others to, either.’
He was competitive in every aspect of his life and believed health and fitness improved
productivity. The naming of the Human Performance Innovation Complex reflects his
leadership in that field and will prove invaluable for future generations of Oklahomans.”

The advanced Boone Pickens Human Performance Innovation Complex and HPNRI are committed
to conducting cutting-edge research, educating the next generation of health and wellness
professionals, and providing evidence-based solutions to improve human performance
and nutrition.

The state of Oklahoma supported OSU’s land-grant mission by providing initial funding
of $50 million through the American Rescue Plan Act for HPNRI. The complex is supported
by the $25 million allocation from the Boone Pickens legacy gift and additional fundraising
continues. Architects are finalizing the facility design, and site preparation and
construction will begin in 2025.