Dockings commit $1 million to benefit KU

Left to right: Bill Docking; Deepak Datta, William and Judy Docking Teaching Professor; Judy Docking; and Bill Fuerst, KU dean of business.

Asserting that no other investment is more important than higher education, Kansas Board of Regents member William R. Docking and his wife, Judy, have committed a $1 million gift for the University.

Half of the gift from the Arkansas City, Kan., couple to the Kansas University Endowment Association has endowed the William and Judy Docking Teaching Professorship Fund for the KU School of Business. The fund, which provides a salary stipend and support for teaching and research, is eligible for additional support through the Kansas Partnership for Faculty of Distinction program. The professorship was recently awarded to Professor Deepak Datta, who has taught in the area of strategic management since 1986.

The gift also includes $100,000 for a fund in the couple's names that provides unrestricted support for the University. The Dockings also pledged to donate $400,000 by the fall of 2005 for the William and Judy Docking Law Scholarship. The scholarship will be awarded to students based on need or merit.

"As a regent and as the son and grandson of two governors of Kansas, Bill Docking is continuing his family's long dedication to the people of Kansas," Chancellor Hemenway said. "This contribution demonstrates the Dockings' awareness of the need for private gifts in order to attract and retain outstanding students and professors to the University of Kansas."

Bill, c '73, l'77, g'77, said his eight years as regent, combined with his family's tradition of public service, exposed him to KU's needs and influenced the couple's choice to give for KU programs. Since 1999, his mother, Meredith Gear Docking, b'47, has contributed $1 million to the Docking Faculty Scholars Fund, a fund she established to provide awards to assistant or associate-level faculty members in an effort to retain them at the University.

"Our family has demonstrated a high commitment to keep the best faculty members at KU," Bill said. "I've watched some of the best and brightest at KU and other regents universities be lured
away by higher salaries. It concerns me because it affects the quality of education."

Bill said that a strong state economy begins with access to a quality public education. "I've seen the value of investing in higher education for the state and the students. No other investment is more important than higher education," he said.

William Fuerst, dean of business, commended the Dockings for establishing the business professorship.

"The Docking Professorship allows us to recognize the excellent contributions made by our faculty and helps us retain those individuals in the School of Business," Fuerst said. "Without this kind of support, it's harder for us to be competitive on a national scale with universities at our peer level and above. We are deeply appreciative of the Dockings' ongoing interest in the school."

Added Stephen McAllister, c'85, l'88, dean of law, " The Docking Scholarship will help the school support outstanding students who may one day serve the public as lawyers, judges, prosecutors, legislators, legal educators and more. On behalf of the School of Law, I thank the Dockings for investing in the success of our students."

As a KU student, Bill was a inducted into the academic honor societies Phi Beta Kappa, Beta Gamma Sigma and Phi Kappa Phi. In 1977, the School of Law awarded him the Samuel Mellinger Scholarship, Leadership and Service Award.

Following graduation, Bill worked in Kansas City, Mo., and earned his certified public accountant license in 1979. In 1983, the Lawrence native was named president and CEO of Union State Bank in Arkansas City, a position he still holds. He is also chairman of City National Bank and Trust Co., of Guymon, Okla., and managing member of Docking Development, LLC, an oil production company in Oxford, Kan. In 2002, he was named president of Cowley County Broadcasting, Inc., which owns two radio stations.
He was appointed to the Kansas Board of Regents in 1995, and served as chair from July 1998 until June 2000. In addition, he is a trustee of KU Endowment and the Cowley County Community College Endowment Association. He has one daughter, Mary Ruth Docking.

Bill and Judy married in 1995. A native of Blackwell, Okla., Judy is a graduate of Pioneer Technical School in Ponca City, Okla. Following graduation, she worked as a labor and delivery nurse for 10 years at Via Christi Oklahoma Regional Medical Center in Ponca City. She has two children, Jennifer Worley and Jake Olsen.

The couple's gift counts toward the $500 million goal of KU First: Invest in Excellence, the largest fund-raising campaign in KU history. KU Endowment is conducting KU First on behalf of KU through 2004 to raise funds for scholarships, fellowships, professorships, capital projects and program support. KU Endowment is an independent, non-profit organization serving as the official fund-raising and fund-management organization for KU.

#top#