CHANCELLOR ROBERT C. KHAYAT
 Ole Miss Chancellor  |
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Khayat's tenure as chancellor is often described as a renaissance at Ole Miss. During that time a capital campaign generated $529.9 million in private support. Under his leadership, the Sally McDonnell-Barksdale Honors College, Croft Institute for International Studies, Lott Leadership Institute, Galtney Center for Academic Computing, Ford Center for the performing Arts, and Winter Institute for Racial Reconciliation all were created.
The University also secured a chapter of Phi Beta Kappa, the nation's most prestigious honor society. The chapter, the first awarded to a public university in Mississippi, came only after endowments, library holdings, technological resources, liberal arts programs and student scholarships all were expanded.
Among his achievements:
- Enrollment increased 35 percent and minority enrollment grew 64 percent.
- Ole Miss earned the Grand Award for the best maintained college campus in the country by a national landscaping society.
- The University celebrated its Sesquicentennial anniversary and commemorated the 40th anniversary of its integration.
- The endowment grew 192 percent, while private support increased 206 percent.
Determination is one of the hallmarks of the Ole Miss community, and Khayat has inspired students, faculty, staff, alumni, and friends to come together to build a great American public university.
A dedicated caretaker, the Chancellor begins most days with an early morning walk around the Oxford campus, where he visits with custodial and grounds staff and examines the University's buildings and surroundings, renewing his commitment to his beloved Ole Miss - an emotional attachment that began early in his life.
A native of Moss Point, Miss., Khayat began his extraordinary journey at Ole Miss in 1956. As an undergraduate, he was a star athlete in two-sports, playing for renowned baseball coach Tom Swayze and legendary football coach John Vaught.
While the Rebel baseball catcher, Khayat helped lead Ole Miss to back-to-back Southeastern Conference Championships in 1959 and 1960. As the Rebels' place-kicker, he led the nation in scoring by a kicker in 1958 and 1959, becoming the only player in school history to do so in consecutive seasons.
Khayat played for the Washington Redskins from 1960-63 and in the NFL Pro Bowl in 1961. He was inducted into the Ole Miss Athletic Hall of Fame in 1993 and Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame in 2000. During the Ole Miss Football Centennial in 1993, he was named by fans to the "Team of the Century" as the kicker. In December 2003, Khayat received the National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame's Distinguished American Award.
His college experience demonstrated that athletes can succeed academically and play an active role in student life. He earned Academic All-American and Academic All-Southeastern Conference honors in 1959.
Following his professional football career, he returned to Ole Miss to attend law school, graduating third in his class. Three years later, he joined the school's faculty. After years in private law practice and teaching, he took a leave of absence during the 1980-81 academic year to earn a Master's of Law at Yale University on a prestigious Sterling Fellowship.
Khayat was promoted to associate law dean before becoming vice chancellor for University Affairs in 1984. He held that post until 1989, when he became the first president of the NCAA Foundation. After three years with the NCAA, he returned to Oxford as a law professor.
The Law School Student Body chose him as its 1993-94 Outstanding Law Professor of the Year, and the school's Mississippi Law Journal staff established a scholarship in his name in 1995.
Khayat was named the University's 15th Chancellor on July 1, 1995, and oversees the Oxford campus, University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson, and degree-granting centers in Southaven and Tupelo.
He is married to the former Margaret Denton of Memphis, Tenn. They have two children: Margaret D. Khayat Bratt of Grand Rapids, Mich., and Robert C. Khayat Jr. of Atlanta, Ga.