The University of Oklahoma received a generous gift to establish the Richard L. Van Horn Chair in Information Technology and Analytics.
The new endowed chair position is funded by a gift from Richard Van Horn, who served as the 12th president of the University of Oklahoma; his wife, Betty Pfefferbaum Van Horn, George Lynn Cross Research Professor Emeritus and former chair of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at the OU College of Medicine; and his sister-in-law Rose Pfefferbaum.
With this endowed chair position, the Division of Management Information Systems in OU’s Price College of Business will be even more poised to recruit and retain leading faculty scholars in information technology and analytics.
“The Van Horn family’s generosity to create an endowed chair perfectly illustrates their longstanding dedication to furthering academic excellence at the University of Oklahoma,” said OU President Joseph Harroz Jr. “We are profoundly grateful for their contributions and service to OU over the years, leaving a lasting impact that is widely felt today. President Van Horn is a renowned scholar in the information systems field, and I can think of no better way to honor his influence on this specialty and his time at OU than through this chair.”
Richard has been actively involved in the field of information systems since 1957. He earned his bachelor of science in industrial management from Yale University and his master of science in industrial management from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He also attended Carnegie-Mellon University, where he earned his doctoral degree in systems sciences. He served as the president of the University of Oklahoma from 1989 to 1994 and continued to teach at the university following his presidential term. He was the first chair of OU’s MIS division, and his research and teaching focused on using information technologies and systems in organizations and aviation management.
Betty, in addition to her role at the OU Health Science Center, is a board-certified general and child psychiatrist, the director of OU’s Terrorism and Disaster Center and an attorney and member of the Oklahoma Bar Association. Her sister, Rose, was the lead developer of the OU Terrorism and Disaster Center’s Communities Advancing Resilience Toolkit (CART) Assessment Survey, an evidence-informed community intervention created to build community resilience after disasters.
The Richard L. Van Horn Chair in Information Technology and Analytics will be awarded to an individual who has a national reputation for research excellence and superior teaching skills that will attract exceptional students to Price College’s MIS division. Currently, TFE Times has OU’s MIS graduate program ranked among the top 25 business analytics programs in the nation, and Best Value Schools has named the undergraduate MIS program the best in the nation.
“We are incredibly grateful to receive this generous commitment to establish a chair in Information Technology and Analytics that will honor President Van Horn’s numerous accomplishments within, and contributions to, our Division of Management and Information Systems,” said Corey Phelps, dean of the Price College of Business. “The chair will help build upon the division’s excellence in teaching and research by helping recruit and retain faculty members of the highest quality and reputation who will attract students of exceptional ability. This gift is yet another testament to President Van Horn’s legacy within our academy and throughout the OU community.”
Throughout their lives, the Van Horns have been faithful supporters of the university, giving back to an institution they have called home for many years.
“Betty and I served longer at OU and have lived longer in Oklahoma than in any other institution or place,” Richard Van Horn said. “We want to give what we can to further enhance our great university, OU.”
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