Challenge for McKetta
Right now we have the opportunity to do something remarkable.
When the chemical engineering community celebrated the 95th birthday of beloved professor, friend and mentor, John J. McKetta Jr., the Department of Chemical Engineering announced the start of the Challenge for McKetta, a fundraising campaign (2008-2014) in support of chemical engineering which, when culminated, will formally name the department in honor of John McKetta.
The Challenge for McKetta is a $25 million philanthropic opportunity for alumni, friends and corporate partners to dedicate the John J. McKetta Jr. Department of Chemical Engineering. This collective investment — by thousands who know and love him — is the ultimate gift for him. To date, we have surpassed the $10 million mark and are looking to the entire ChE community to help maintain our momentum.
Every gift counts
The Challenge for McKetta campaign will honor all philanthropic gifts to the department, including:
- outright gifts
- multi-year pledges (payable over five years)
- corporate matching to employee giving
- corporate philanthropy
- documented estate bequests and other income-producing gifts.
There are two ways to designate your giving:
1. Make an unrestricted gift, at any level, and it will be added to the already established McKetta Challenge Fund Endowment in Chemical Engineering, which supports department growth and excellence through faculty recruitment, student support at the graduate and undergraduate level, laboratory enhancements and more. This endowment was established in the mid 1990’s under the McKetta Challenge fundraising effort. We are now trying to grow this endowment in order to position the department now and in the future for continued excellence.
2. Chemical engineering alumni and friends also have the chance to leave their legacy on the department by creating an endowment in their own name. Gifts of $25,000 and above, either through an outright gift, a multi-year pledge or an estate bequest, may be used to establish a named endowment. Below are the various levels of giving in order of departmental priority.
Printer friendly PDF version of Challenge for McKetta overview.
Endowment Minimums
Faculty 
Endowed Leadership Chair $2 Million
Endowed Faculty Chair $1 Million
Endowed Professorship $750,000
Endowed Faculty Early Career Award $500,000
Students – Graduate Fellowships
Dean’s Graduate Fellow $750,000
Foundation Graduate Fellow $250,000
Endowed Presidential Graduate Fellow $100,000
Programs and Research
Endowed Excellence Fund $25,000 or more
Undergraduate Scholarships
Endowed Presidential Scholarship $50,000 or more
Endowed Undergraduate Scholarship $25,000 or more
The opportunity… and why now?
The University of Texas at Austin debuted The Campaign for Texas in the fall of 2008. President William Powers Jr. said, “the $3 billion Campaign for Texas will enable us to build on our strengths and take our academic programs and research endeavors to an even higher level.” To parallel this effort, The Challenge for McKetta will build on the Department of Chemical Engineering’s long-standing strengths and help the department advance to an even greater level of academic success and research capability.
This is an extraordinary time in the department’s history as there is no
other figure alive 
whose impact could invoke this level of commitment
and support from alumni and friends. Once named, the John J. McKetta Department of Chemical Engineering will become the first named department in the Cockrell School of Engineering, and it will tie McKetta’s name to educational excellence in perpetuity.
Even more extraordinary is the opportunity to include John in this powerful movement. Please consider your experience on the Forty Acres and what role you and your family can play in honoring Dr. McKetta.
For more information about The Challenge for McKetta, or to ask questions, contact:
Kelsey S. Evans
Director of Development
1 University Station C2100
Austin, TX 78712-0287
512-471-6151 – office
512-471-3955 – fax
Kelsey.evans@mail.utexas.edu