A $1 million gift from alumnus Pat Noyes and his wife, Cindy, has helped Rose-Hulman complete recent additions to its athletic facilities including Cook Stadium with the addition of a state-of-the-art electronic scoreboard at the east end of Phil Brown Football Field and Bill Welch Outdoor Track.

The scoreboard will be unveiled during the Fightin’ Engineers’ first home football game, September 10, and dedicated during a special ceremony on Homecoming, October 8.

The 40½-foot-long, 22½-foot-high structure, produced by the Daktronics large-format video display company, will showcase live in-game action, display game information and graphics, and highlight corporate and alumni sponsors. It will be the largest electronic scoreboard at a NCAA Division III stadium east of the Mississippi River and third largest among all Division III institutions.

Noyes is chief executive officer of Grenadier Energy Partners, an upstream exploration and production company in the energy sector based in The Woodlands, Texas. He is a 1976 Rose-Hulman mechanical engineering graduate who also received an honorary degree from the Institute in 2016.

“Pat and Cindy’s loyalty and support have been transformative to Rose-Hulman and our students,” says Rose-Hulman President Robert A. Coons. “We continue to be grateful for their generosity in helping to support our facilities and our students’ personal growth; through leadership opportunities and their involvement in campus activities.”   

The significant role that Rose-Hulman has played in their personal and professional lives has been the basis for the Noyes’ philanthropic contributions to the Institute. They have generously supported the Patrick J. Noyes Scholarship Endowment Fund, the Bill Sisson Sigma Nu Scholarship Endowment Fund, and additions to the Athletic Department through the Athletic Endowment Fund.

“We’ve been blessed in many ways in our lives and have always believed in giving back to support people and organizations that helped shape our character and provided opportunity to help others succeed,” says Pat Noyes. “We appreciate Rose-Hulman and want it to continue providing worthwhile opportunities to students that accentuate their strong academic backgrounds.”

A former Rose-Hulman record-setting football quarterback and baseball varsity letterman, Noyes also was a Sigma Nu fraternity member.

“The scoreboard is icing on the cake for the wonderful renovations that have been taking place to Phil Brown Field,” remarks Pat, “The best part of my student experience was playing football and baseball. Forming lasting relationships with my teammates and fraternity brothers were also integral to that experience. With such a large percentage of the Rose-Hulman student body participating in extracurricular activities, my hope is that more students will find their overall college experience to be more fulfilling and meaningful.”

The Noyes’ donation also will help Rose-Hulman’s athletic department to meet the current and long-range needs of student-athletes, coaches and staff members, according to Athletic Director Ayanna Tweedy. 

“The continued success of Rose-Hulman athletic teams and student-athletes is dependent upon supportive alumni families like Pat and Cindy. We’re thankful they share our vision for the future of Rose-Hulman athletics through their support of our current and future projects,” remarks Tweedy.

Pat Noyes has spent his entire professional career in the energy sector, starting at Exxon upon graduating from Rose-Hulman in 1976. Four years later, he joined Mitchell Energy Company, where he was part of the leadership team that launched the U.S. shale gas revolution. After Mitchell was sold in 2002, Noyes became chief executive officer of Stroud Energy, rescuing the company from financial distress. In 2007 he founded Grenadier Energy Partners.