Spears School of Business

History

It was almost as if they made “the run” to establish a college; it happened so fast. The Land Run of 1889, as every Oklahoman knows, refers to the event that took place on April 22, 1889. When the signaling shot was fired, more than 50,000 people with little money, high hopes and enormous courage descended in a mad competitive rush to stake claims on land that was later to become a part of the state of Oklahoma. Stillwater, the home of Oklahoma State University and the Spears School of Business, was included in that area. The very next year, the hardy souls who settled in Stillwater saw the founding bill passed for the organization of the Agricultural and Mechanical College of the Territory of Oklahoma – the school that later became Oklahoma State University.

The establishment of the college was made possible by the Morrill Land-Grant Act of 1862, which granted 30,000 acres to each eligible state for the establishment of colleges. In 1890, a second Morrill Act was passed, granting “a portion of the proceeds of the public lands to the more complete endowment and support of colleges for the benefit of agriculture and the mechanic arts established under the provisions of an act of Congress approved July 2, 1862” (Clark, para. 1). In time, the purpose the land-grant colleges expanded. Now, the purpose of the colleges is threefold: to teach, conduct research and perform outreach activities.

Even with the generous grants from the government, the first few years for the Agricultural and Mechanical College of the Territory of Oklahoma were difficult. Classes at the college began on Dec. 14, 1891 and were held in the Congregational Church in town. Initial enrollment consisted of only 45 students, though that number swelled to 70 by the end of the year. In June 1894, the college dedicated its first building, Old Central, which still stands on the campus today.

Not long after the first class of students graduated, the college hired its first business teacher: Georgina M. Holt. Holt, who was born in Ireland, came to the college in 1898 to teach stenography and typewriting. Holt resigned from the college after teaching for just five years, though she only left to marry Dr. Lowery Layman Lewis. According to Kincaid (1987), “L.L. Lewis was one of the most capable, most revered of all the people who ever served the college” (p. 14). In fact, Lewis Field, the famous home of the OSU Cowboys football team, was named in honor of L. L. Lewis. During his tenure at the college, Lewis served as a teacher and researcher and as the president of the college, dean of the school of science and literature, and dean of veterinary medicine. Lewis was also instrumental in furthering the development of business education for the college.

After Holt resigned, she was replaced by Z. J. Cawood, who was given the title “Principal of the Business School.” The school was divided into two departments: stenography and typewriting, and the business course, which explored such subjects as English, commercial law, business forms, and business correspondence. Even so, the school was not truly separated from the rest of the college until 1914, when Lewis helped establish the School of Commerce and Marketing. Though at the time it was noted that this was the first business school in the nation, it was actually not; however, it was, in fact, the first department of marketing ever established. During its first year, there were 37 students enrolled in the school, though that number increased to 164 in just two years. By 1920, enrollment was 298, and in 1921 it grew to 365. The school also expanded the courses it offered based on the four sides of business: production, marketing, finance and accounting.

In 1922, the School of Commerce and Marketing recorded the largest enrollment of any of the six schools on the campus, and it got its first official building, called the Old Engineering Building. Perhaps the most significant event that year, however, was the school’s adoption of a policy allowing women to be admitted to the School of Commerce and Marketing on the same basis as men. The school’s life in the Old Engineering Building was short lived. In 1925, the School of Commerce upgraded to Morrill Hall, the stately building that still stands next to the Business Building on campus today. By 1927, the college had 12 faculty members. Interestingly, the tuition for Oklahoma residents was absolutely free at that time, and non-Oklahoma residents only had to pay $10.00 per quarter. Rent for a dorm room was $27.50 to $31.50 per semester. In total, the cost for a student to attend Oklahoma A&M College was between $300 and $450 for a nine-month term.

In 1929, Raymond Doty Thomas was chosen as dean for the School of Commerce. Thomas revolutionized the college, and the school’s most coveted award for undergraduates was eventually named after him. According to Kincaid (1987), “Although perhaps it was not apparent at the time, the year Raymond Thomas became dean of the School of Commerce signified the end of one stage in the evolution of the College of Business Administration” (p. 35). On Oct. 29 of that year, the stock market crashed, greatly influencing the future of the college. As Kincaid (1987) noted, “It ushered in the world-wide panic and depression that would pervade the lives of everyone for the next decade.”

Rankings

Oklahoma State University’s Spears School of Business is in the top 14.9 percent of business schools in the United States, according to the 2012 rankings by U.S. News & World Report. The Spears School is ranked one of the top 70 schools out of the 651 business schools accredited by The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB).

Oklahoma State’s part-time MBA program is in the top 28 percent in the U.S. News & World Report rankings, listed at No. 75 of the 335 programs surveyed in 2012.

Accreditation

Since 1958, all academic programs in the Spears School of Business have been accredited by the AACSB International.

Undergraduate Programs

Master’s Programs

Certificate Programs

Ph.D. Programs

Institutes and Centers

Notable Alumni