Oklahoma State Names New Human Performance Innovation Complex After Pickens
Oklahoma State’s new state of the art Human Performance Innovation Complex will be named after the late T. Boone Pickens. Pickens was a businessman and mega-philanthropist who became a driving force behind the success at O-State.
The complex’s name recognizes and honors Pickens, a well-loved alum who has donated close to $650 million. In June 2023, Oklahoma State received a $120 million legacy gift from the T. Boone Pickens Foundation. $25 million of the allocated money was to be used for the OSU Human Performance Innovation Complex.
The complex is located north of the Sherman E. Smith Training Center. It houses and supports the work of Oklahoma State’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."
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.”
“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,” said Pickens long time head of affairs, Jay Rosser.
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.
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Taylor Skieens has been an avid sports journalist with the McCurtain Gazette in Idabel, Oklahoma for seven years. He holds the title of Sports Editor for one of the oldest remaining print publications in the state of Oklahoma. Taylor grew up in the small lumber town of Wright City Oklahoma where he played baseball and basketball for the Lumberjax.