OKLAHOMA CITY – Jon R. Stuart of Tulsa has been elected as chairman of the University of Oklahoma Board of Regents and A. Max Weitzenhoffer of Norman has been elected as vice chairman of the board.
Stuart was appointed to the Board of Regents by Gov. Frank Keating in 2002 for a seven-year term and was reappointed by Gov. Brad Henry in March 2009. He is president and chief executive officer of First Stuart Corp., a Tulsa-based family investment company, as well as managing partner of Jon R. Stuart Interests, L.L.C., principally in the energy business. He is the royal Norwegian Consul for Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri and Arkansas, as appointed by His Royal Highness King Harald VI of Norway. Stuart is a longtime member and past chairman of the City of Tulsa, Rogers County Port Authority.
He serves on the Gilcrease Museum’s Boards of Directors and is past president and chairman. Stuart has served as a trustee of the Lew Wentz Foundation, and is on the Board of Visitors of the Charles M. Russell Center at OU. He has served on seven bank boards as well as the New York and American stock exchanges. The Stuart Family Foundation provided the lead gift for the 18,000-square-foot expansion of the Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art, in addition to other gifts to OU. Stuart has been honored as a member of the Seed Sower Society.
Weitzenhoffer was appointed to the Board of Regents by Gov. Henry in 2003 for a seven-year term and was reappointed in 2010. He is a highly acclaimed independent producer of New York and London theatre productions and has won numerous Tony, Olivier, Evening Standard and Drama Critics awards. With family ties to Oklahoma predating statehood, he graduated from OU with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Drama. He has served many professional organizations, including the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, the Stage Directors and Choreographers Foundation, President of New York’s Circle Repertory Company and is a member of the league of New York Theatres and Producers. He is also involved with several community service projects in Norman and Oklahoma.
Weitzenhoffer is a supporter of numerous OU programs, including helping create the Department of Musical Theatre which bears his name. He has been honored by the university with numerous awards, including a Regents’ Alumni Award and an Honorary Doctorate. In 1994, he was inducted into the Oklahoma Hall of Fame.
Chris A. Purcell of Norman was elected to serve as the board’s executive secretary and vice president for university governance. Purcell, who has been re-elected each year since 1992, also serves as secretary of OU, Cameron University and Rogers State University. She was selected in 2005 by OU’s Jeannine Rainbolt College of Education as one of “75 Who Made A Difference” as well as being honored with the Walter Neustadt and with the UOSA Outstanding Administrator awards. In 2014, the Norman Chamber of Commerce selected Purcell as the recipient of their Women’s Leadership Award, and in 2012, she was honored by the Journal Record among 50 Making a Difference in Oklahoma. In addition to her other duties, she teaches courses in adult education, higher education and human relations. She earned her bachelor of arts, master’s in education and doctoral degrees, all from OU.
