ARLINGTON, Texas — Dallas oil billionaire Kelcy Warren just made the largest single donation to the University of Texas-Arlington in the college's history, school officials announced this week.
Warren gifted UT-Arlington $12 million "to help elevate UTA to the forefront of the growing resource and energy engineering (REE) field," the university said in a news release.
The university said Warren's donation will "fuel faculty and research excellence" at the school's engineering program
“I am honored to give back to the institution that has played such a pivotal role in advancing my educational and professional journeys,” said Warren, a 1978 graduate of UT-Arlington who is also on the University of Texas System Board of Regents. "Texas faces a critical need for highly skilled graduates who can manage energy resources, and this innovative REE program will help meet that demand.”
UT-Arlington will name three endowed academic positions in Warren's honor, along with a laboratory, a "career experience center" and scholarship and fellowship recipients.
Here's the full list of programs and funding the gift will provide, according to the university:
- Create the Kelcy Warren Endowed Professorship in Resource and Energy Engineering to recruit and retain a world-class faculty member to lead the program
- Create two Kelcy Warren Endowed Faculty Fellowships to recruit and retain distinguished scholars to enhance the REE educational experience
- Support state-of-the-art REE laboratory space and equipment that will provide faculty and students with the best possible resources to explore solutions to today’s most pressing energy challenges
- Create the Kelcy Warren Career Experience Center to provide opportunities for engineering undergraduates to engage in experiential learning, including internships and co-ops
- Provide scholarship support for REE undergraduate students—to be named Warren Scholars—to help them fulfill their educational goals
- Provide fellowship support for engineering graduate students—to be named Warren Fellows—interested in energy industry careers upon graduation
- Support research experiences for engineering undergraduates to prepare them for success in the energy industry and other high-demand fields
Warren, the founder and board chairman of Dallas-based oil company Energy Transfer, is also notable for his donation that helped fund Klyde Warren Park in downtown Dallas. The park is named after Warren's son, Klyde.
