Our Mission and History

In 1985, while serving Oklahoma as a U.S. senator, OFE founder David L. Boren brought together a group of Oklahoma business and community leaders with the common goal of improving public education in the state. All agreed that private investment was crucial to the success of public schools. The result was the establishment of a statewide, nonprofit organization, the Oklahoma Foundation for Excellence, with the mission of recognizing and encouraging academic excellence in Oklahoma’s public schools. The foundation is a 501 (c)(3) charitable organization supported solely by private contributions from donors like you.

Academic Awards Program

Launched in 1987

Through our flagship Academic Awards Program, OFE presents $175,000 annually to honor outstanding public high school seniors as Academic All-Staters and exceptional educators as Medal for Excellence winners. The Academic Awards Celebration is the state’s most prestigious academic celebration, saluting leading public school foundations, students and educators.

Oklahoma School Foundations Network (formerly Local Education Foundation Outreach)

Launched in 1989

Helping strengthen grassroots support for public schools, our Oklahoma School Foundations Network provides free training, resources and networking opportunities for new and established school foundations. The program has been instrumental in helping build one of the nation’s largest networks of education foundations, with more than 200 established to date. Together, these citizen nonprofits have raised millions of dollars to support academic excellence and have encouraged community involvement in their local schools.

Teacher Professional Development

Launched in 1993

OFE has partnered with the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation since 1993 to award fellowships for fifth- and eighth-grade Oklahoma teachers to attend the renowned Colonial Williamsburg Teacher Institute in Virginia. The institute immerses teachers in 18th-century life through hands-on activities and reenactments of historic events.

Inspired by the success of these fellowships, OFE began offering grants in 2003 for Oklahoma teachers to attend national conferences in their chosen fields. Today, we partner with the national Fund for Teachers and the Tulsa Community Foundation to provide career-transforming Fund for Teachers grants for self-designed summer professional development opportunities around the world. 

Boren Mentoring Initiative

Launched in 2006

Recognizing the proven impact of mentoring on student success, the foundation established its statewide Boren Mentoring Initiative in 2006. The initiative promotes the growth and development of quality youth mentoring programs statewide, providing free on-call support and resources for those seeking to start or strengthen their mentoring program. In 2022, we began awarding start-up grants for new and developing mentoring organizations and opportunity grants to support strategic needs of K-12 mentoring programs.