For Immediate Release – Lawton, OK, April 9, 2004
Cameron begins work on new technology center
A ceremony was held this morning at Cameron University to officially mark the beginning of construction on
a facility designed to promote new technologies and economic development in Southwest Oklahoma.
Community leaders from around Southwest Oklahoma joined Cameron faculty and students for a look
inside the university’s former Physical Science Building, which will become the Center for Emerging
Technology and Entrepreneurial Studies (CETES) by the end of the year.
CETES will be a multipurpose facility that is intended to become a catalyst for the development and growth
of knowledge-based industries in Oklahoma. It will use state-of-the-art technology and the expertise of CU
faculty to develop a trained workforce and provide support services for fledgling industries.
Cameron president Cindy Ross noted that creation of CETES is a prime example of the need for higher
education to play a role in economic development in the years ahead. In order for Oklahoma to prosper in
the 21st century, it must move away from a philosophy of developing low-skill, minimum-wage jobs and
instead must identify and create an environment that stimulates technology-driven companies. Doing so
will help stop the exodus of the state’s college-educated residents to other states in search of better-paying
jobs.
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This philosophy strongly echoes recommendations made in a recent policy study conducted at the request
of Oklahoma Gov. Brad Henry.
That study, “Oklahoma’s EDGE” – which stands for Economic
Development Generating Excellence – indicated that the state’s higher education institutions should
become more actively involved with local business communities and establish the systems, structures and
knowledge necessary to grow high-paying and high-performance companies involving new technologies.
“CETES will help grow the next generation of innovators – the small young companies that will bring
emerging technologies to market,” said Ross. “Cameron University will provide the necessary support
network, advanced technological curriculum and business acumen for companies to become successful in
our global economy.”
The work now underway is the first of several phases to expand the building that housed Cameron’s
physical science department from 1964 until it moved into the newly completed CU Sciences Complex in
1996. Architectural engineers inspected the Physical Science Building late last year and declared it
physically sound and well suited for the proposed center.
The first phase of the renovation will include space for the CU Department of MultiMedia Instructional
Design. Since its creation in 1998, enrollment in this educational program has grown to three times the
administration’s original projections and the department has played a key role in providing skilled
employees for technology-based industries across the nation. Additionally, the department has been
awarded 11 grants from the Oklahoma Center for the Advancement of Science and Technology in recent
years to develop internships to strengthen knowledge-based industries.
Last year, the department expanded its reputation with a grant from the U.S. Agency for International
Development – as part of a consortium that included the Langston University, Oklahoma State University
and the University of Oklahoma – to help rebuild Iraq’s higher education technology infrastructure.
In addition to housing Cameron’s multimedia department, CETES will contain an incubator to sustain new
technology companies. The center will provide office space, technical advice and computer support for
entrepreneurs to encourage them to locate their businesses in Southwest Oklahoma. The center will
contain as many as 12 of these units.
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CETES will also become the home of the Virginia Brewczynski Endowed Chair in Management. The chair
was created in 1994 by the Lawton Retail Merchants Association to advance the teaching of leadership in
business. A nationwide search is currently underway to fill the position, which will also serve as assistant
director of CETES.
The first phase of the project will cost approximately $2.5 million. More than half that cost will be financed
through private donations, including $750,000 from the Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation in Ardmore,
$300,000 from the McCasland Foundation in Duncan, and $250,000 from the Sarkey’s Foundation in Tulsa.
A 1998 bond issue provided nearly $1 million more, and $75,000 will come from the Governor’s Oil
Overcharge Fund. The remaining cost – approximately $200,000 – will come from targeted institutional
funds.
Cameron administrators say that the first phase should be completed by December 2004.
Additional phases planned for the development of CETES may include a large academic lecture hall, a
networking center, a business conference facility and a center for regional economic development. Earlier
this week, the Lawton City Council voted to include $1.5 for a multi-agency emergency operations center,
data disaster recovery system and a regional emergency preparedness and recovery training center to the
list of projects proposed in its 2005 Capital Improvement Program, which will be submitted to local voters
later this year.
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PR#04-088
Editors and Broadcasters: For more information, contact CU Government & Community Relations at
580.581.2211.