Dr. Roger P. Bey distinguished himself as a member of The University of Tulsa faculty from 1983 to 2011, serving as a Professor of Finance, Chairman of the Department of Finance and Operations Management (now the School of Finance and Operations Management), holder of the J. Bradley Oxley Endowed Chair in Business Administration, and co-founder and director of the successful Friends of Finance organization.
In 1985, Professor Bey worked with fellow faculty member Mark Collins and TU Finance alumni, Bob Prince, Bruce Currie and Bob Harrison, to develop the concept of the Friends of Finance organization. With Bey leading the way, the professors and alumni nurtured and developed this organization into a thriving support group with more than 400 members, which has successfully raised money for the Finance Excellence Fund. The Finance Excellence Fund feeds into the Student Investment Fund (currently valued at more than $7,000,000), which is managed by TU finance students, giving them valuable hands-on investment and portfolio management experience. Distributions from the Student Investment Fund have provided more than $1,000,000 in scholarships to finance students through the years.
Friends of Finance has also served as an outreach organization, enabling regular interaction between the Tulsa business community and TU’s academic community, especially through the Executive Speaker Series, which brings renowned business executives to TU’s campus eight times a year to share their knowledge and expertise.
On the occasion of his retirement in 2011, the TU family wished to honor Roger Bey for his 28 years of devoted service and pay tribute to him for his work with the Student Investment Fund and Friends of Finance. As a result, the Friends of Finance organization designated a portion of the Student Investment Fund to serve as an endowed scholarship fund, and this sub-fund is officially recognized as The Roger P. Bey Finance Scholarship Endowment, supporting finance students in the Collins College of Business. The entire Student Investment Fund, including The Roger P. Bey Finance Scholarship Endowment, continues to be managed by finance students.
The Friends of Finance organization continues to shine an international spotlight on the School of Finance and Operations Management. The University of Tulsa is deeply grateful to this supportive group of alumni, friends, and professors who have made it a priority to provide unique advantages to TU finance students in the form of hands-on learning opportunities and scholarships.
