Enid’s Bert Mackie is among 11 individuals selected by The Oklahoma Higher Education Heritage Society for induction into the Oklahoma Higher Education Hall of Fame.
The 2020 induction ceremony, scheduled for Nov. 2, has been cancelled due to the continuing health and safety risks of the COVID-19 pandemic. The society will announce its plan for rescheduling the event to honor the class of 2020 in the near future.
“Bert is passionate about helping people and creating opportunities for students,” said Northern Oklahoma College President Dr. Cheryl Evans. “He is a man of his word and is an extremely hard worker. He is a very humble man who never seeks credit or the spotlight, however he has spent a lifetime quietly working behind the scenes to make things happen for others especially in education. He understands and values the important role that higher education plays in our state. I’m thankful that he has been willing to spend so much of his time invested in our students. We are thrilled that Bert is being recognized with this well-deserved honor.”
As a young businessman, Mackie supported the former Phillips University in Enid and was an integral member of the scholarship fundraising team. He is a gifted fundraiser and has raised money to help students attend college for decades including Northern Oklahoma College and Northwestern Oklahoma State University students. In addition, he has served on the foundation boards of both NOC and NWOSU.
Mackie has been an advocate for the Oklahoma higher education serving as an Oklahoma State Regent for Higher Education from 1977-89 and as an advisory director for Oklahoma City University, and he is a past member of the board of directors for the United Way of Enid and past president of the Enid Chamber of Commerce. He was named United Way Citizen of the Year in 2011 and is a recipient of the Enid Lifetime Achievement Award and the Pillar of the Plains Award, among numerous other honors.
He served as president of the Oklahoma Foundation for Excellence, a nonprofit organization that supports academic excellence in Oklahoma’s public schools. Mackie is one of the foundation’s founding trustees and continues to serve the organization since 1985.
He was also president, chief operating officer and vice chairman of the board for Security National Bank and served as trustee and asset manager for the Harold Hamm Family Trust. He also served as director of ONEOK and was one of nine members of the presidential-appointed board of governors for the U.S. Postal Service.
Mackie was a founding member of the Enid Higher Education Council and helped bring first the Enid Higher Education Learning Center to Enid and then Northern Oklahoma College and Northwestern Oklahoma State University campuses. He helped establish the “Bridge Program” between NOC and NWOSU even helping bring in a restored bridge to place between the schools’ properties to show the partnership that exists and to remove physical barriers between the campuses.
The Mackie Planetarium on the NOC Enid campus is named in Mackie’s Honor.
“NOC was privileged to name our planetarium in the Mackie family’s honor as they have been a great friends to the institution and generous supporters of this STEM program,” Dr. Evans added.
In addition to Mackie, Carl Renfro, Les Crall, JoLaine Draugalis, Tim Faltyn, Joseph Missal, David Resasco, Paul Risser, David Sabatini, Tom Volturo, and Bob Blackburn were also selected.
The Oklahoma Higher Education Heritage Society was established in 1991 as a nonprofit to support awareness of higher education’s vital role in Oklahoma history and honor individuals, living and deceased, for outstanding service to higher education in the state. Since its establishment in 1994, the society has inducted almost 300 educators, administrators and others who have made distinguished contributions to higher education into the hall of fame.
To be eligible for induction, an individual must have been employed by one or more public or private institutions of higher education in Oklahoma on a full-time basis for at least 10 years. Individuals, outside organizations or institutions who have performed outstanding service to higher education in the state above and beyond financial contributions are also eligible.
For more information, visit www.ohehs.org or contact Diane Carroll at dcarroll@usao.edu or 405-574-1331.