About

the Boone Pickens Human Performance Innovation Complex

The Boone Pickens Human Performance Innovation Complex (BPHPIC) at Oklahoma State University is a transformative initiative bringing together the Human Performance and Nutrition Research Institute (HPNRI) and Oklahoma State University Athletics. Situated within OSU’s Athletic Village, the complex represents a significant advancement in human performance and health sciences, aiming to improve lives across Oklahoma. This state-of-the-art facility integrates cutting-edge research in human performance and nutrition, elite athletic training and strategic partnerships with industry leaders to address health challenges in Oklahoma and beyond.

This first-of-a-kind institute is sparking collaboration between our academic, medical, veterinary and sports research experts to elevate the very definition of a land-grant university system. Our goal is to generate a greater understanding of human performance, and then take that knowledge to positively change health outcomes for all Oklahomans.

— OSU President Kayse Shrum

About the Facility

The Human Performance Innovation Complex is designed to support both the HPNRI and OSU Athletics with specialized spaces and shared resources. The building will be adjacent to Boone Pickens Stadium, near the Sherman E. Smith Training Center, and will feature experimental “living labs” embedded within the athletic training environment. These labs, dedicated to movement science, fueling, and recovery, will foster applied research in areas like biomechanics, metabolism, and cognitive health.

Renderings showcase specialized labs, transdisciplinary collaboration spaces and advanced testing and training facilities. These features will enable OSU athletes, researchers, and students to collaborate in new ways, advancing both health and performance science.

About Our Name

In a celebration held at Boone Pickens Stadium in November 2024, OSU unveiled the name, the Boone Pickens Human Performance Innovation Complex and recognized the Boone Pickens Foundation for the visionary leadership and support from the late T. Boone Pickens. The event highlighted OSU’s dedication to advancing health and performance research, honoring those who are fueling this mission.

About Our Donors

The Human Performance and Nutrition Research Institute and this state-of-the-art facility is made possible through the generosity of dedicated donors committed to creating a healthier Oklahoma.

Benefactors include: Rick and Gail Muncrief, Bob and Elizabeth Nickels, George and Janice Thompson, Boone Pickens Foundation, Chickasaw Nation, Loren and Elaine Cook, David Lindsey, and Anonymous

Their investments, totaling $105 million to date, have laid the groundwork for this innovative project and inspired further contributions to reach our goals. This profound support has established a lasting legacy that will directly impact the health and well-being of communities across the state.

Boone Pickens believed that exercise was a sound investment. He enjoyed an active boyhood, including a stint on his high school basketball team, but did not fully appreciate the impact of physical fitness until he took up racquetball in his 40s. Playing regularly led to sustained energy and better concentration throughout the workday. This observation led Pickens to build a pioneering onsite fitness center for his company in 1979. Mesa’s fitness program became a model for corporate America. It was the first company to be accredited by the Institute for Aerobics Research. Until his last few months, Pickens continued to work out regularly, attributing such dedication to keeping him nimble—in body and mind.

Stay fit. You don’t want to get old and feel bad. You’ll also get a lot more accomplished and feel better about yourself if you stay fit. I didn’t make it to 91 by neglecting my health.

- Boone Pickens

Boone playing basketball

Health in OklahomaOklahoma ranks extremely low in many of the preventable health outcomes according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data. In 2020, Oklahoma has the second highest death rate from heart disease in the country — only Mississippi fared slightly worse. Oklahoma also posted the second highest death rate from lower respiratory disease mortality, the fourth highest death rate from cancer and the fifth highest death rate related to diabetes. The future is created by what we do today, not tomorrow.

diagnosed with heart disease

12%

diagnosed with diabetes

34%

are obese

35%

are overweight

Help Solve Health ProblemsBe a Part of Transforming Health Outcomes in Oklahoma.

Join us in achieving OSU’s ambitious goals to address systemic health threats by investing in the Human Performance and Nutrition Research Institute. Your support is crucial to meeting our $135 million project goal and securing the future of Oklahoma’s only university-based human performance research institute. Opportunities for named gifts are available, with recognition given to donors in order of their commitment. By contributing, you are directly supporting research, education and community outreach that will have a lasting impact across the state.

DONATE TO OUR MISSION