Mar 27, 2014 08:24 AM EDT By Staff Reporter, UniversityHerald Reporter

Dave and Denise Lamp, a Dallas oil executive and his wife made a gift of $2.5 million to the Michigan State University College of Engineering to support scholarships and research in the school's Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science.

Out of the $2.5 million donation, about $2 million will be used to set up the David L. and Denise M. Lamp Endowed Chair in College of Engineering's Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science and the remaining $500,000 will be allocated to support a previous scholarship fund established by the Lamp family.

"I credit a good deal of my professional and business success to my academic experience at Michigan State University," David Lamp, a 1980 graduate of chemical engineering, said in a statement. "We are pleased to further the mission of the department and enhance excellence in the MSU College of Engineering."

University President Lou Anna K. Simon is grateful to the Lamps for their extraordinary spirit of giving. Simon believes that endowed chairs and scholarships advance MSU's mission of higher education.

"Endowed chairs enable us to build a base of highly regarded faculty who are considered leaders in research and teaching. There is a ripple effect as these stellar faculty members help us to attract the brightest students," Simon said.

Martin Hawley, chairperson of the Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, said the Lamp Endowed Chair will increase scientific initiatives in the field of chemistry.

Besides Lamp Endowed Chair for the East Lansing school, the gift from the Lamps also expands financial aid for chemical engineering students. The couple launched the David L. and Denise M. Lamp Engineers of Tomorrow Endowed Scholarship Fund for undergraduates 2007.

Dave Lamp has spent 34 years of his professional life in the petroleum-refining industry including technical, operations, commercial and senior management endeavors. Lamp was chosen CEO and president of Northern Tier Energy, March 2014. His previous engagements were as the senior vice president and chief operating officer for HollyFrontier Corp., and senior management positions with HollyFrontier since 2004.

In March 22, 2013, Michigan State University Federal Credit Union made a gift of $1 million to the school's Eli and Edythe Broad Art Museum to attract prominent artists to the campus and hold seminars and workshops to offer engagement opportunities for students, faculty and the public.

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