Polk Smith, former NFL player Mark Gastineau, past governors Robert S. Kerr and George Nigh, former U.S. Representative Lyle Boren, Oklahoma Supreme Court Justice Tom Colbert, and U.S. Army General James D. Thurman.
ECU is approximately 90 miles (140 km) from Oklahoma City, 115 miles (185 km) from Tulsa and 150 miles (240 km) from Dallas. Today the campus consists of 37 buildings on 135 acres (55 ha); the university typically enrolls more than 3,500 students per semester from more than 30 countries and 25 states.
== History ==
The university was founded as East Central State Normal School in 1909, two years after Oklahoma was admitted as the 46th U.S. state. It was one of the six newly created state funded normal schools that were designed to provide four years of "preparatory" (or high school) study, followed by two years of college work towards teacher certification. The school's establishment was the product of the intense lobbying efforts of the 25,000 Club, a local booster group. The club raised funds …
