Faculty Excellence

Named and endowed positions help UW recruit, reward and retain top talent.

Excellent faculty members are key to a successful university. They teach and mentor students, but they also help draw top students to the university, bring in research dollars and lead innovation. For these reasons and more, the state of Wyoming and the University of Wyoming Foundation increasingly make investments in faculty excellence an institutional priority.

“Our talented and dedicated faculty provide our students with an exceptional educational experience and lead cutting-edge research that advances our state, nation and world,” says UW President Ed Seidel.

“We’re enhancing our investments in our faculty through new initiatives like the President’s Distinguished Scholars Program that recognizes and rewards outstanding scholarship among faculty in all academic disciplines.”

Another way the state and university are attracting and retaining top faculty is through named and endowed positions. This includes four deanships, five department heads, 25 chairs, 38 professorships and 16 fellowships — each one a testament to UW’s dedication to groundbreaking research, high-impact education and the continued advancement of knowledge.

“Named dean positions for colleges at the University of Wyoming are valuable on many levels,” says Interim Provost J. Scott Turpen. “These gifts provide a sustainable source of funding for a dean’s strategic initiatives, faculty recruitment, research projects, student scholarships and other projects. They enhance institutional prestige and attract talent to the college by elevating the stature. Deanships also signal robust donor support and confidence in the university, further enhancing our reputation.”

Investment in Faculty

Matching programs are a critical way the state and university fund endowed and named positions. The original state matching program was established in 2001 by the Legislature, and UW has received more than $227 million in state matching funds supporting faculty, students and academic and athletic facilities across campus. It was designed to leverage the generosity of donors and to encourage a new level of giving. Through this program, endowment gifts of $50,000 or more and facility gifts of $25,000 or more are doubled by the state of Wyoming.

In 2022, two new efforts helped boost student and faculty excellence. First, the UW Board of Trustees made an investment in funds for students, faculty and research excellence. Second, the UW Foundation Board made an investment to create two endowment matching funds: $2.5 million for student success and $2.5 million for faculty excellence. UW partnered with donors to match these gifts. In 2024, the state invested $10 million in state matching funds (in the already-established Endowment Challenge Program), and the trustees designated $5 million for student success and $5 million for faculty excellence. UW has been working with donors to match those funds as well, creating named positions, including the H. A. “Dave” True Jr. Family College of Business Deanship, the Thomas and Shelley Botts Department Head in Civil Engineering, the John P. Ellbogen Foundation Professor of Early Childhood Education, and the Donald L. Blackstone Jr. Professorship in Geology.

Foundation President and CEO John Stark is thankful for the steadfast support of donors and the matching programs from the state and university. 

“The matching program has been wildly successful,” he says. “There aren’t many universities or states around the country that truly have a corpus matching program like ours for endowment.”

Seeing donors’ interest in named positions also inspired further support from the state.

“When you make it an institutional priority, then you really build that culture of philanthropy around those named faculty positions, and momentum grows,” Stark says. “In turn, named deanships and department chairs are essential in cultivating exceptional leadership at the highest levels, recognizing those who drive excellence and attracting world-class faculty to elevate UW to its fullest potential.”

Often, these donors also are UW alumni who appreciate the professors and administrators who had such an impact on them as students.

“There’s a real sense of ‘I love my alma mater, and I want to see us stack up with the big boys,’” Stark says.

“I think all those factors really inspire donors to support these positions.”

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John P. “Jack” Ellbogen Dean

John P. “Jack” Ellbogen is the benefactor of the John P. Ellbogen Foundation, which is committed to improving the lives of Wyoming citizens through charitable investment. A Wyoming native, he earned a bachelor’s degree, law degree and honorary doctorate from the UW College of Business. He attributed his success in business and as an independent oil producer to his education and outstanding teachers, so it’s no wonder the Ellbogen Foundation chose to invest in UW, including the first named deanship in the College of Education, which was established in 2020.

“In alignment with the Ellbogen Foundation mission, the College of Education deanship is an important resource dedicated to advancing the dissemination of faculty expertise in both teaching and research,” says John P. Ellbogen Foundation President Mary Ellbogen Garland. “It also supports essential outreach and innovative programming to foster excellence through improved learning outcomes and broader impact across communities in Wyoming.”

Jenna Min Shim serves as the John P. “Jack” Ellbogen Dean and says the funding has been instrumental in advancing key initiatives within the College of Education that directly benefit Wyoming’s educators, students and communities.

“Through this fund, we have been able to provide scholarships, research assistantships and travel opportunities for both graduate and undergraduate students, expanding their academic and professional development,” she says. “Additionally, we have allocated resources toward hiring faculty and ensuring the availability of essential courses. One of the fund’s most significant impacts is supporting statewide education initiatives. For example, the fund has enabled us to expand the career and technical education teacher pipeline, addressing critical workforce shortages in Wyoming. The fund also has played a pivotal role in the success of our Rural Teacher Corps, an initiative in partnership with the Teton Science Schools that prepares students for teaching in rural communities. In essence, the Ellbogen deanship provides the financial agility and strategic backing needed to elevate the College of Education’s mission.”

Beyond financial support, Shim says the deanship reflects a deep and lasting commitment to the power of education in Wyoming.

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H.A. “Dave” True Jr. Family College of Business Deanship

For 75 years, the extended family of Wyoming wildcatter H.A. “Dave” True Jr. has been actively engaged in oil and gas, ranching, building companies and supporting communities. The family also has a four-generation tie to UW. After establishing the H.A. “Dave” True Jr. Chair in Petroleum and Natural Gas Economics at UW in 2007, the True family established a deanship for the College of Business in 2023.

“I believe UW and our state need to have a strong business school because we need the skill and the economic mindset,” says Dave True, who is a former trustee of the university, co-owner of True companies and a son of H.A. “Dave” True Jr.

“We are proud to have the True Family Deanship in the College of Business,” says inaugural H.A. “Dave” True Jr. Family College of Business Dean Scott Beaulier. “We see the fund supporting outstanding faculty in the college as well as key initiatives such as excellence in energy economics, where we are one of the best programs nationwide. Having the True deanship attached to our college has allowed us to grow closer with the True family and the amazing team of True Company employees, and these relationships are helping our students with job placement — a win-win for both entities.”

Beaulier says endowed deanships give colleges and deans financial means to fund initiatives, attract and retain talent and perpetuate excellence. 

“A named deanship says loud and clear to others that the college is a good investment and has a lot to offer alumni, donors and students,” Beaulier says. “The True family represents the values our college upholds, such as training students on the integrity of a handshake, and their gift extends their legacy in our state into perpetuity.”

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Patrick Heasler Professorship in Mathematics and Statistics

UW alum Patrick Heasler gave a landmark gift to establish the first-ever endowed professorship in the Department of Mathematics and Statistics — the Patrick Heasler Professorship in Mathematics and Statistics.

“My experiences at the University of Wyoming, and particularly the Mathematics department, determined my choice for a rewarding career as a statistician,” Heasler says. “I received scholarships during my time at the university and resolved to pay back the institution for its generosity with this gift.”

The professorship will enhance the university’s ability to recruit and retain outstanding faculty in the Department of Mathematics and Statistics, furthering its mission to provide an exceptional educational experience for students and to advance research and scholarship in the mathematical sciences.

“The professorship will greatly impact the department’s mission for years to come,” says Department Head Jason Williford. “We are profoundly grateful for this visionary gift, which strengthens our commitment to academic excellence and innovation.”

The Heasler fund was matched through the 2024 state endowment matching program, for a total of $500,000. This matching program provides a significant boost, doubling the impact of Heasler’s gift and supporting the university’s long-term commitment to faculty excellence.

One of the most significant aspects of Heasler’s gift is its broad and flexible funding structure, which ensures that the department can adapt the funding to meet its most pressing needs, maximizing the impact of the gift and helping the university respond to changing priorities and opportunities over time.