Featured Stories
What Is the UAlbany Carillon? The Story Behind a Campus Landmark
ALBANY, New York, Oct. 6 -- SUNY University at Albany issued the following news:
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What Is the UAlbany Carillon? The Story Behind a Campus Landmark
By George McFarland, Class of '28
ALBANY, N.Y. (Oct. 5, 2026) -- Every hour, on the hour, chimes echo throughout the University at Albany campus.
The source of this noise, as most students are aware, is the large tower in the center of the Academic Podium, often referred to as the Carillon, which stands 250 feet above the ground. But do you know what this tower is actually used for?
It was built in 1965 and designed by Edward Durell Stone,
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ALBANY, New York, Oct. 6 -- SUNY University at Albany issued the following news:
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What Is the UAlbany Carillon? The Story Behind a Campus Landmark
By George McFarland, Class of '28
ALBANY, N.Y. (Oct. 5, 2026) -- Every hour, on the hour, chimes echo throughout the University at Albany campus.
The source of this noise, as most students are aware, is the large tower in the center of the Academic Podium, often referred to as the Carillon, which stands 250 feet above the ground. But do you know what this tower is actually used for?
It was built in 1965 and designed by Edward Durell Stone,the architect responsible for the entire modern Uptown Campus. Ever heard the tale that our campus was designed for Arizona? It's not true. Stone designed the Uptown Campus from scratch for Albany.
Stone's flat design lets wind travel through the pillars we know and love, keeping students cool in summer. The tunnels, which were originally designed and are still used for service, help to keep students warm in the winter.
At the same time the quads were built, so was the podium where most undergraduate students have class. Right in the middle of the podium stands the 250-foot tower. Most students know it purely because it makes noise every hour; that's what I thought of it, too.
But did you know that it's actually a water tower? Yeah, I had no idea either. All of the water used by students on the Uptown Campus comes from a 311,000-gallon water tank hiding inside the tower. That's why it's so tall. Not only is there a great view from the top, but it's what gives the whole campus its water pressure.
It even won Tank of the Year from the Steel Plate Fabricators Association in 1968. Yes, that's a real award.
How Does Damien Get Up There?
If you've looked at the UAlbany Instagram page, you've likely seen different posts where our school mascot, Damien, is posing on top of the Carillon. I, along with so many people I know, have wondered how he got up there. Was it by helicopter? Did he parachute down from a plane? Did he spin his tail around fast enough to lift him off the ground?
None of those, actually. Damien gets up there via a ladder inside the center of the Carillon. Technically, anyone can climb it, but only authorized people are allowed to. I would know.
The climb to the top takes about 30 minutes and once you get to the top, you're treated to a beautiful view of the landscape, mostly the Uptown Campus, but the surrounding area too. So not only is this giant tower filled with water for the students and faculty, there's a ladder inside that takes you straight to the top. Pretty cool!
The Bells Chimed Again
At the top of the water tower is the Carillon itself, a gift donated by alumni in 1964. Construction was completed in 1965. That's what you hear chime on the half-hour and the hour every day. The bells aren't in the water tower itself, they're in the 23-foot cap on top, which also happens to make the tower look like a cigarette.
It's called the Carillon because the instrument used to create those bell sounds is a Symphonic Carillon. It's controlled through a keyboard called the baton console in the Lecture Center.
If you live in Stuyvesant Tower on Dutch Quad, you'll be interested to hear that the Carillon was actually first installed on top of your building. Imagine just how loud it would be if you lived there! Thankfully, it was moved to the top of the water tower a few years later, making the sound more centralized on campus.
There have been several repairs and renovations over the years to keep the Carillon, and the water tower beneath it, in perfect shape so it can continue playing its lovely sounds every single day.
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Original text here: https://www.albany.edu/news-center/news/2026-what-ualbany-carillon-story-behind-campus-landmark
University of Texas Highlights Donor-Driven Innovation and Data-Powered Approaches to Redefine Cancer Treatment
AUSTIN, Texas, Oct. 6 -- The University of Texas issued the following news:
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Powering the Next Breakthrough
Dell Med fuels research, technology and discoveries that are redefining the future of cancer treatment.
October 5, 2026
Every advancement in cancer research begins with a bold idea and people who dare to dream big. Cancer is one of the greatest challenges of our time, affecting millions of families, yet each patient has a unique story to tell. Solving cancer requires more than determination. It requires collaboration, innovation and resources to turn possibility into progress.
By
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AUSTIN, Texas, Oct. 6 -- The University of Texas issued the following news:
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Powering the Next Breakthrough
Dell Med fuels research, technology and discoveries that are redefining the future of cancer treatment.
October 5, 2026
Every advancement in cancer research begins with a bold idea and people who dare to dream big. Cancer is one of the greatest challenges of our time, affecting millions of families, yet each patient has a unique story to tell. Solving cancer requires more than determination. It requires collaboration, innovation and resources to turn possibility into progress.
Bybringing together world-class experts in medicine, computer science, mathematics and engineering, researchers at Dell Medical School are unlocking new ways to understand cancer and develop treatments tailored to each patient. Powered by real-world patient data and strengthened through continuous collaboration, every discovery builds on the last, accelerating the journey from laboratories to bedsides.
Philanthropic support gives thought leaders the freedom to pursue new ideas, test approaches, and transform discoveries into life-saving solutions. Donor generosity fuels the partnerships, technology and innovation that can redefine what's possible in cancer treatment.
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Students, faculty members and research are supported by Longhorns who have given to the What Starts Here campaign. See the impact of Longhorn generosity (https://giving.utexas.edu/what-starts-here/impact/).
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Original text here: https://news.utexas.edu/2026/10/05/powering-the-next-breakthrough/
Michigan State University College of Social Science: Kaplowitz Distinguished Lecturer Brendan Nyhan Tackles the Myths of Online Misinformation
EAST LANSING, Michigan, Oct. 6 -- Michigan State University College of Social Science posted the following news:
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Oct. 5, 2026
Kaplowitz Distinguished Lecturer Brendan Nyhan tackles the myths of online misinformation
By Karessa Weir
Online misinformation happens but its impact isn't nearly as broad or as pervasive as most people fear, according to this year's Stan and Toba Kaplowitz Distinguished Lecturer.
Brendan Nyhan is the James O. Freedman Presidential Professor in the Department of Government at Dartmouth College and has been researching myths about misinformation. In this year's
... Show Full Article
EAST LANSING, Michigan, Oct. 6 -- Michigan State University College of Social Science posted the following news:
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Oct. 5, 2026
Kaplowitz Distinguished Lecturer Brendan Nyhan tackles the myths of online misinformation
By Karessa Weir
Online misinformation happens but its impact isn't nearly as broad or as pervasive as most people fear, according to this year's Stan and Toba Kaplowitz Distinguished Lecturer.
Brendan Nyhan is the James O. Freedman Presidential Professor in the Department of Government at Dartmouth College and has been researching myths about misinformation. In this year'slecture, he argued against ideas that most Americans are in online echo chambers, that false news and extreme content are widely consumed, that social media causes widespread harms and that fact-checking usually backfires.
"In each case, the conventional wisdom misunderstands the problem in ways that could undermine efforts to effectively address it," Nyhan said. "There is a lot of misinformation about misinformation."
Internationally over the last decade, concerns have risen over the ways technological development like social media and AI impacts factors like increased political polarization. While these fears are real, they are far from new, Nyhan said.
"People feared this would happen when TVs became popular and before that radio, and even the printing press," Nyhan said. "People have always said things are getting worse, and there was this kind of golden age in the past. You should be very suspicious of that kind of stuff from older people. It's insufferable."
Nyhan defines misinformation as false and unsupported claims - different from disinformation which is a deliberate, malicious effort to spread lies. He studied where people get their news from digital behavior data because most people overreport where and how often they pay attention to news coverage.
"In the most extensive social science study of this type conducted during the 2020 elections, where we varied exposure to different kinds of content, we found minimal effects on people's beliefs and attitudes," Nyhan said.
"When we changed the composition of what we saw on social media, we saw no evidence that changing their information diet in important ways had effects on their attitudes or beliefs."
Instead he finds that the people who receive information from the most extreme sources are those who already have values and beliefs that align with the misinformation presented by those sources. So there is little to no evidence that this misinformation changes their views or their voting behavior.
"These are relatively small numbers of people with relatively extreme values consuming the majority of extreme content," he said. "We found 1.7 percent of users responsible for 80 percent of the time spent viewing alternative videos YouTube. The number for extremist shows was even higher, around 90 percent."
Nyhan also found that fact-checking does not cause people to double down on wrong information or belief. Instead, it does get them to change their minds - but only briefly. He tested people in the United States and Great Britian in four waves asking them about COVID misinformation . The subjects were given correct information and tested their beliefs. The first re-survey showed the subjects now shared the correct information but when they were asked a third and fourth time, they had reverted to believing in the misinformation even though they knew it was wrong.
"A really important challenge is not that people are rejecting correct information at the moment,it is that the effects aren't lasting," Nyhan said. "An additional complication that makes effective fact changing at scale really difficult is reaching the audiences that might most benefit from exposure to that information."
A solution lies in each person taking the responsibility to be a credible source and sharing accurate information with the people who are closest to them, who trust them and who view them as a leader.
"In your own life, think about for whom you are a credible source - your friends, your family, folks you work with, folks you go to school with," Nyhan said. "Those are the people you can help in a respectful, generous way."
Also a former Professor of Public Policy at the University of Michigan, Nyhan is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and a former Guggenheim Fellow and Carnegie Fellow. He is co-director of Bright Line Watch, a watchdog monitoring the status of American democracy; a former contributor to The Upshot at The New York Times; co-founder of Spinsanity, a non-partisan watchdog of political spin syndicated in the Philadelphia Inquirer; and co-author of All the President's Spin, a New York Times bestseller.
Sociology Professor Emeritus Stan Kaplowitz and his wife, Toba, created the Stan and Toba Kaplowitz Distinguished Lecture Series in 2024 with their inaugural lecture by renowned environmentalist Robert Bullard. Last year, MSU Sociology Distinguished Professor Emeritus Tom Dietz, a member of the National Academy of Sciences, presented the second lecture.
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Original text here: https://socialscience.msu.edu/news/2026/10/2026-10-kaplowitz-lecture
Michigan Medicine: Rural-urban Disparities in Head and Neck Cancer
ANN ARBOR, Michigan, Oct. 6 (TNSjou) -- Michigan Medicine, the academic medical center of the University of Michigan, issued the following news release:
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Rural-urban disparities in head and neck cancer
Overall age-adjusted mortality rates rose from 2018 to 2024
October 5, 2026
Existing research has shown a higher rural than urban mortality for head and neck cancers.
In a new paper in Oral Oncology, University of Michigan Health researchers explicated these trends, examining differences in outcomes in urban and rural settings for different kinds of cancer, including larynx, oral cavity
... Show Full Article
ANN ARBOR, Michigan, Oct. 6 (TNSjou) -- Michigan Medicine, the academic medical center of the University of Michigan, issued the following news release:
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Rural-urban disparities in head and neck cancer
Overall age-adjusted mortality rates rose from 2018 to 2024
October 5, 2026
Existing research has shown a higher rural than urban mortality for head and neck cancers.
In a new paper in Oral Oncology, University of Michigan Health researchers explicated these trends, examining differences in outcomes in urban and rural settings for different kinds of cancer, including larynx, oral cavityand oropharynx.
Senior author David W.A. Forner, M.D., M.Sc., Clinical Assistant Professor of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery at the University of Michigan Medical School, discusses their findings in this Q&A.
What are the main findings of this latest paper?
Forner: This study found that patients with head and neck cancer who live in rural areas have a higher mortality rate compared to those living in urban areas.
This difference is getting worse over time and also differs by where in the head and neck the cancer is located.
To what extent do these differences reflect different rates of improvement (e.g., urban patients having quicker access to innovations) versus a worsening of results in rural areas?
Forner: Both mechanisms (different rate of improvement and worsening rural mortality) are likely to be at play, as evidenced by our subsite analyses.
Overall, there appears to be a worsening of age adjusted mortality amongst patients living in rural areas.
This is compared to a relatively constant age adjusted mortality for patients living in large metro areas.
While urban patients may or may not have quicker access to specialized health care and innovations, these results suggest there are additional factors impacting rural patients.
Oropharyngeal cancer mortality was previously similar in urban and rural areas. Now it's much higher in rural areas. What do you think caused the change?
Forner: The difference may be driven by cases associated by human papillomavirus and differences in smoking and other risk factor exposure.
This is a unique area of future research.
When these disparities are broken down by specific subsites, which subsite seems easiest to address in the short term? Which subsite disparity will be hardest to address?
Forner: It is difficult to know which subsite is the easiest to address in the short term as they all have their own unique considerations and hypotheses as to what is creating the rural-urban disparity.
This current study generates a lot of future questions.
Oropharyngeal cancer is the most common head and neck cancer and reducing the disparity may have the greatest impact.
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Original text here: https://www.uofmhealth.org/health-lab/rural-urban-disparities-head-and-neck-cancer
Case Western Reserve: Forged for Impact - Inside the ISEB's Advanced Materials & Manufacturing Research Cluster
CLEVELAND, Ohio, Oct. 6 -- Case Western Reserve University issued the following news:
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Forged for impact: Inside the ISEB's Advanced Materials & Manufacturing research cluster
Case Western Reserve researchers are rethinking the materials behind everyday life--and the new Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering Building is giving them the space to do it together.
October 05, 2026 | Story by: Lydia Coutre
This story is the second in a series introducing the research, people and building that will define Case Western Reserve's next chapter of discovery. Over the coming weeks, we'll go
... Show Full Article
CLEVELAND, Ohio, Oct. 6 -- Case Western Reserve University issued the following news:
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Forged for impact: Inside the ISEB's Advanced Materials & Manufacturing research cluster
Case Western Reserve researchers are rethinking the materials behind everyday life--and the new Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering Building is giving them the space to do it together.
October 05, 2026 | Story by: Lydia Coutre
This story is the second in a series introducing the research, people and building that will define Case Western Reserve's next chapter of discovery. Over the coming weeks, we'll goinside each of the seven research clusters and the resources that make the work possible.
The texture of the paint on a wall. The durability of a car's paint and metal it protects. The viscosity of the shampoo you squeezed onto your hand this morning. The consistency of a meal reheated in the microwave. Materials--coatings, polymers, adhesives, membranes, hydrogels and so much more--are behind all of it.
A team of scientists within the Advanced Materials & Manufacturing research cluster at Case Western Reserve University will work to discover, develop and improve materials and the processes used to make them. The cluster is one of seven established for the Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering Building (ISEB), opening this fall.
Advanced Materials & Manufacturing brings together five faculty researchers who work across a variety of materials--hard, soft, biological, synthetic, porous, nuclear, chemical, rare-earth elements and more--for applications in energy, consumer products, human health and quantum technologies.
Metin Karayilan, PhD, assistant professor in the Department of Chemistry, and Lydia Kisley, PhD, Ambrose Swasey Associate Professor of Physics, both join from the College of Arts and Sciences, while the others come from Case School of Engineering: Chris Wirth, PhD, and Christine Duval, PhD, both associate professors in the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering and Svetlana Morozova, associate professor in the Department of Macromolecular Science and Engineering.
On the first floor of the ISEB, the Advanced Materials & Manufacturing research cluster will train students for the advanced manufacturing workforce and deepen partnerships with the industries whose hardest problems they are working to solve.
'Together we can do so much'
From synthesizing something entirely new to refining and optimizing the performance of materials we rely on every day, the cluster members have all the skills needed for the entire lifecycle of creating new materials.
For example, Karayilan, an organic polymer chemist, could synthesize a novel recyclable polymer that Wirth, faculty lead for the cluster, can mix with solvents and other additives to formulate it into a liquid coating. Duval might modify a membrane that Kisley can characterize and measure.
"Each one of us has a specific set of skills, but together we can do so much," said Morozova, whose lab is focused on the physics of soft polymers and how their molecular structure determines how they flow, feel and behave.
Kisley brings to the cluster advanced microscopy techniques to characterize materials at the scale of individual molecules. In one project, she's developing a silly-putty-like polymer material that allows researchers to stretch a sample and see the details inside of a cell with higher resolution. Karayilan's expertise in polymers intersects with this work, as well as Morozova's interest in how and why materials behave in certain ways. Kisley and Morozova have already published research together examining how collagen proteins assemble within biological matrices--and specifically how the stiffness and elasticity of the surrounding environment informs that assembly.
"The dream would be doing all those steps in a connected way, where each of the PIs is involved for one research question or material," Kisley said.
The cluster members are already well on their way to that vision, but working from separate buildings across campus slows their discovery. It can take students several days to coordinate sample exchanges between labs, such as those of Kisley and Duval, whose work on chemical separations includes ways to purify and separate rare-earth elements that are essential for electronics and green technologies.
Wirth recalls a time when his student walked a sample back from Karayilan's lab and began to work with it, only to realize the viscosity was too low for what they needed. In the shared lab in the ISEB, they can offer that feedback in real time. Plus, students will learn from the perspectives, techniques and language of different disciplines, which advances innovation, Wirth said.
Setting the cluster and students up for success
It takes more than removing geographic barriers to build a genuinely collaborative, high-quality training environment in a cutting-edge shared research lab--which is why the Advanced Materials & Manufacturing cluster held three retreats over the summer to begin shaping their vision for the new space.
In the first of two faculty-only retreats, the five cluster members looked inward, drafting bylaws to identify shared values (high-quality educational experiences and leading-edge science) and to guide how they'd work together, onboard new members, manage conflict, run meetings and potentially shift direction over time. In the second, they turned outward, focusing on external engagement and stakeholder collaboration, brainstorming programming such as workshops, open houses and courses. They're planning a regular seminar series throughout the year, and an annual summer short course for students and regional professionals to learn techniques relevant to their work.
With that foundation established, they invited the entire team--undergraduates, graduate students, postdocs and research associates from all five labs--to the third and final retreat at the University Farm, where many met for the first time and began to learn the details of the cluster where they'll work, learn and build their careers.
The ISEB's collaborative environment mirrors the multi-sector research settings students will encounter in corporate science and national laboratories. That's by design.
"When you go to work a job, you're not working in just the physics department of some company," Kisley said. "There's always going to be different scientists and engineers that you're going to be working with."
The cluster's deep commitment to industry engagement also means students will gain direct exposure to various local partners while helping them solve key challenges.
Morozova's partners have included Lubrizol, Sherwin-Williams and Nestle. She's helped Lubrizol reformulate Carbopol, a polymer molecule found in countless personal care products, replacing its conventional ingredients with a more biodegradable alternative. For Sherwin-Williams, her lab modifies molecular components of the formulations for paints and coatings to control properties like viscosity, surface texture and flow.
Kisley recently received funding from Sherwin-Williams to study metal corrosion. Right now, the standard method involves placing metal outside for two years and checking how the paint held up. Using her advanced microscopy, Kisley detects molecular signs of metal corrosion at the moment it starts in order to assess anti-corrosive coating.
"We drive our cars in the winter with all that salt," she said. "We want to figure out ways to prevent or slow down corrosion."
This is the type of high-value, use-inspired research the cluster is designed to produce; and Northeast Ohio is a particularly rich environment for this work.
Building collaborations across industry
Across sectors, businesses want sustainable resources with reliable supply chains. The cluster's research can help create those resources. Some companies are looking to change or improve formulations, advance their manufacturing techniques or improve their materials. The cluster hopes to work with local industry to make those advances.
In July, a partnership of 70+ area organizations convened and led by CWRU--known as NEO-SMART--won a prestigious U.S. National Science Foundation award of up to $160 million. Working to make Northeast Ohio a national innovation hub for advanced materials and manufacturing, the partnership and the ISEB could benefit from each other's work and success.
The Advanced Materials & Manufacturing cluster is particularly aligned with NEO-SMART, Wirth said, pointing to both the expertise within the cluster and the common ethos of connecting research and industry applications among regional and corporate stakeholders.
The federal spending package U.S. Congress approved earlier this year included $1.75 million for Case Western Reserve University's Advanced Product Manufacturing Technologies Initiative--a wide-ranging effort to propel industrial innovation and talent nationally. The cluster is working to stand up a core facility to provide CWRU and external researchers with shared access to instrumentation that will be purchased with this funding, Wirth said.
"We're really thinking about what we put into that center to be responsive to corporate needs," he added.
Through the bylaws outlined over the summer, the team proposed a mechanism for collaborators to become cluster affiliates. Non-CWRU researchers collaborating on a grant, a peer at a national lab or corporate partners could attend meetings, join email listservs or use some of the bench space that was specifically left open for partnerships.
"If they have a particular type of experiment, a new type of chemistry that they want to test, a new formulation approach or anything like that they want to try out in the environment that is our cluster, then we're going to allow them to do that," Wirth said, adding that he's socialized the idea with manufacturers in the region who are intrigued.
In a region defined by its manufacturing heritage, the Advanced Materials & Manufacturing cluster will help write the next chapter, advancing the science behind the materials that industry needs and the innovations that everyday life depends on.
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Original text here: https://case.edu/news/forged-impact-inside-isebs-advanced-materials-manufacturing-research-cluster
Case Western Reserve: Building the Future of Healthcare Innovation
CLEVELAND, Ohio, Oct. 6 -- Case Western Reserve University issued the following news:
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Building the future of healthcare innovation
Halle Tecco earns Alumni Association's Professional Achievement Award for her work as an entrepreneur, investor and educator
October 05, 2026
Story by: Anthony Fossaceca
Halle Tecco (CWR '06) built her career by moving early toward new ideas and emerging opportunities others had not yet fully recognized.
That mindset helped define her path as an entrepreneur, investor and educator, and earned Tecco the Professional Achievement Award from the Alumni Association
... Show Full Article
CLEVELAND, Ohio, Oct. 6 -- Case Western Reserve University issued the following news:
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Building the future of healthcare innovation
Halle Tecco earns Alumni Association's Professional Achievement Award for her work as an entrepreneur, investor and educator
October 05, 2026
Story by: Anthony Fossaceca
Halle Tecco (CWR '06) built her career by moving early toward new ideas and emerging opportunities others had not yet fully recognized.
That mindset helped define her path as an entrepreneur, investor and educator, and earned Tecco the Professional Achievement Award from the Alumni Associationof Case Western Reserve University. The award recognizes a graduate of the university whose career accomplishments and leadership have brought distinction to both the individual and the university.
After graduating from CWRU, Tecco joined Intel's finance management program and moved to Silicon Valley, drawn by the chance to be close to technological breakthroughs as they were happening. But even then, she knew she wanted work that paired innovation with purpose.
That vision sharpened during business school, when she interned at Apple and was given the healthcare segment to manage at a time when the company--and much of the tech world--had not yet focused seriously on healthcare.
"I think Apple's perspective was basically, 'Let the intern work on it and see what she comes up with,' she recalled. "The way I saw it was, "oh my gosh, what an opportunity.'"
What Tecco found was an unmet need in healthcare to better serve patients, reduce costs, improve outcomes and expand access. That discovery led her to focus her work on the intersection of healthcare and technology.
"In my mind, there's no better way to make a positive impact on society than through human health," she said.
After business school, rather than taking what she described as the "safe corporate job," Tecco took a leap and founded Rock Health, building one of the earliest platforms dedicated to digital health innovation.
"I realized I could either keep trying to convince people or just start building," she said. "Sometimes you're not the most qualified person to do something, but you're the most willing. Always be the most willing."
Tecco credits CWRU with helping build that confidence. She said the university's academic rigor, seminars and broad campus experiences pushed her to think critically, communicate effectively and raise her hand when opportunities emerged. A first-generation college graduate, she also said scholarships and work-study made it possible for her to attend Case Western Reserve at all.
Since then, Tecco has gone on to earn graduate degrees from Johns Hopkins University and Harvard Business School, teach digital health investing at Columbia Business School and serve on multiple boards, all while continuing to invest in companies and ideas she believes can improve healthcare. Earlier this year, Tecco released Massively Better Healthcare: The Innovator's Guide to Tackling Healthcare's Biggest Challenges, which debuted on the top spot in the Entrepreneurship category on Amazon.
Her advice to current students and recent graduates who may not have mapped out a perfectly linear career path: "Optimize for learning, not just title of compensation," she said. "Titles and compensation are nice, but really think about what you can learn and who you're going to spend your time with."
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Original text here: https://case.edu/news/building-future-healthcare-innovation
'It Put Us on the Map': Okmulgee Leaders Reflect on 80 Years of OSUIT
STILLWATER, Oklahoma, Oct. 6 -- Oklahoma State University issued the following news:
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'It put us on the map': Okmulgee leaders reflect on 80 years of OSUIT
October 5, 2026
Oklahoma State University Institute of Technology's mission to train young people to succeed in their future careers has lifted Okmulgee to greater prominence, according to city leaders.
For 80 years, OSUIT has strived to provide young people from Oklahoma, across the United States and throughout the world with career-readiness skills that would enable them to fill important jobs in vital industries. This noble mission
... Show Full Article
STILLWATER, Oklahoma, Oct. 6 -- Oklahoma State University issued the following news:
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'It put us on the map': Okmulgee leaders reflect on 80 years of OSUIT
October 5, 2026
Oklahoma State University Institute of Technology's mission to train young people to succeed in their future careers has lifted Okmulgee to greater prominence, according to city leaders.
For 80 years, OSUIT has strived to provide young people from Oklahoma, across the United States and throughout the world with career-readiness skills that would enable them to fill important jobs in vital industries. This noble missionbegan in 1946 when a military hospital nestled in 230 acres of Okmulgee land was converted into a vocational school for veterans returning from World War II. The school rapidly evolved into a university that has trained countless veterans and civilians, enabling them to gain high-quality, well-paying jobs soon after graduation.
"A lot of those people found jobs in our community and continue to find jobs. We believe that Okmulgee is blessed because of OSUIT," Okmulgee Mayor Mickey Baldwin said. "It's been a huge piece to help educate but also put jobs into practice day after day in Okmulgee."
OSUIT is a family tradition for Steven Baldridge, Okmulgee city councilman and former mayor. He attended OSUIT, as did his father, son and daughter. He earned his associate degree at OSUIT in 2020 and was a student while simultaneously serving as mayor.
"I don't even know how to quantify the impact that OSU has on Okmulgee. It put us on the map," Baldridge said.
OSUIT has a long, enduring tradition of supporting the Okmulgee community, according to Baldridge. It's a tradition that helps generations of community members realize greater possibilities.
"We have a destination for our children when they graduate high school; doing concurrent enrollment has really helped as well," Baldridge said. "Having an educational ladder for our children is a benefit to our community."
OSUIT's student body comprises not only local residents, but also students from the far reaches of Oklahoma, other states across the nation, and other countries. Those students enrich the community in a variety of ways, according to Baldridge.
"The students live here and purchase [from our local businesses], and they're involved in our community. They get involved in our churches and our nonprofits," he said.
OSUIT has not only expanded educational and career opportunities in Okmulgee, but it has also invested in the downtown area and restored the city's beloved Grand Old Post Office on East 5th Street, Baldridge said.
Okmulgee residents feel at home at OSUIT, frequently visiting the campus to enjoy breakfast and lunch in the Cowboy Cafe, participating in campus festivities, dining in the Culinary Arts program's Cowboy Chef's Table and Grand Buffet events and strolling or exercising on the walking trails, Baldridge said.
As Okmulgee has grown and changed, so has the OSUIT campus.
The campus opened in November 1943 as Glennan Military Hospital. It spanned 605,000 square feet of floor space across dozens of barracks, connected by almost 8,000 feet of covered ramps. It cost more than $5 million to build and could house 1,725 beds for the care of military veterans. The hospital had a staff of 400 officers and personnel, around 100 Army nurses, and more than 600 civil service employees when operating at full capacity. The hospital operated for nearly two years. The property's east side served as a German prisoner of war camp.
Fred Harlan, owner of Harlan Ford, grew up in Okmulgee back when OSUIT was called Oklahoma State Tech, when the campus still had many of the barracks from the former military hospital standing. Harlan graduated from OSU-Stillwater in 1974 and returned to Okmulgee to work at First National Bank.
Harlan led a fund drive to build Oklahoma State Tech's Student Union, which still stands at the center of the OSUIT campus. He also helped demolish the old barracks during a long effort to transform the old military hospital campus into a fully realized university with academic and administrative buildings and dormitories.
OSUIT started as a basic trade education school, training service members in a wide number of trades, including electrical work, plumbing, building construction, dry cleaning, commercial art and automotive repair, among many others.
"And then it started evolving into more of the computerized stuff we got now," Harlan said.
Harlan was a member of the OSU Board of Regents from 1999 until 2007. His connection to OSUIT remains strong. He is an ardent supporter of the school, and many of the technicians who have worked at his dealership over the years earned an associate in applied science degree through OSUIT's Ford Automotive Student Service Educational Training (ASSET) program. Harlan also has interns through OSUIT's Ford program.
He said OSUIT produces highly skilled, talented professionals who elevate businesses such as his.
"[They have] excellent, excellent skills. It's a very good, very good training program," Harlan said.
OSUIT not only offers technical training that fuels Oklahoma industries, but also offers four-year bachelor's degree programs.
Harlan said OSUIT is not only a major employer in Okmulgee but also a core part of the city's culture.
"It's a major coup to have a four-year university here. It's enhanced the town a lot. And the interaction between the faculty and staff and the folks here in town is a major piece of Okmulgee and always has been," Harlan said.
Baldwin agrees.
"Okmulgee has definitely been put on the map because of OSUIT," Baldwin said.
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Original text here: https://news.okstate.edu/articles/osuit/2026/it-put-us-on-the-map-okmulgee-leaders-reflect-on-80-years-of-osuit
