OU Health has landed a $2 million gift from the Stuart Family Foundation to help power the Stephenson Cancer Center expansion in Tulsa, a major boost for a project that aims to bring research-driven, National Cancer Institute-level care closer to home for patients across northeastern Oklahoma. The money supports a 176,000-square-foot outpatient facility rising on OU’s Schusterman campus, where officials say more clinical trials and advanced treatments will be offered without the long drives many patients currently face.
According to OU Health, the Tulsa site is planned with 70 exam rooms, 45 infusion spaces, three linear accelerators and robust imaging capacity, including MRI and PET-CT. There will also be dedicated space for clinical trials that can grow as demand ramps up. In a nod to the donors, the first-floor café at the new center will carry the name Stuart Family Foundation Café.
Funding and response
Susan Peterson, a trustee of the Stuart Family Foundation, said the gift is rooted in the family’s long ties to both OU and Tulsa, and that the café is intended to offer “relaxation and respite” for patients, families and staff, as reported by Journal Record. Dr. Robert Mannel, director of OU Health Stephenson Cancer Center, said the donation “strengthens our ability to advance research, grow clinical trials and deliver patient-centered care,” according to the outlet.
Where this fits in the statewide plan
The Tulsa expansion broke ground in November 2025 and is slated to open in 2028 as part of a wider public-private push that blends legislative appropriations with major Stephenson family philanthropy, according to the University of Oklahoma. Officials say building out advanced imaging, infusion and clinical trial capacity in Tulsa should cut travel time for many cancer patients while broadening access to early-phase studies across the region.
Why it matters locally
The Stuart Family Foundation, established in 1971 by Harold C. Stuart and Joan Skelley Stuart, has a long track record of backing Oklahoma nonprofits, and trustees said this latest gift is a continuation of that legacy, per Journal Record. The Stephenson Cancer Center is Oklahoma’s only National Cancer Institute-designated cancer center, according to the National Cancer Institute, and leaders say the Tulsa site will translate that status into more treatments and trials delivered closer to patients’ homes.
