OSU Surpasses Goal For $1 Billion Fundraiser

The end of the year means the end of a very successful fundraising campaign for Oklahoma State University.

When he became president of the university seven years ago, Burns Hargis set a goal of raising a billion dollars by the end of 2014.

That billion dollar goal was actually met two years ago, so as the year comes to a close, the fund-drive has actually brought in a $1.3 billion.

That's at a university with a yearly budget of about $50 million, and a legislature that continues to cut funding of the state's public colleges and universities.

Burns Hargis, OSU President: "So it isn't gonna be the game changer. What's the game changer is the 100,000 donors, and if you do a good job in keeping those donors informed and convincing them that their gift had the intended positive consequence, they haven't given their last gift."

The money will be used in a variety of different ways, including:

• $500 million for scholarships.
• $200 million for endowed chairs and other faculty support.
• $200 million to keep up the place.
• $100 million will support and strengthen the university's programs.