A member of the Kansas Board of Regents has donated $1 million to his alma mater, Kansas University.

The gift from Bill Docking and his wife, Judy, will fund a teaching professorship in the KU School of Business, officials at the KU Endowment Association announced Thursday.

The donation also includes $100,000 in unrestricted funds for the university, and the Dockings have pledged an additional $400,000 by fall 2005 for a law scholarship.

Bill Docking, who lives in Arkansas City, has been on the Board of Regents longer than any other member. He was appointed in 1995.

Docking said his experience as a regent had showed how important it was to support Kansas faculty members.

“I’ve watched some of the best and brightest at KU and other regents universities be lured away by higher salaries,” he said. “It concerns me because it affects the quality of education.”

Docking received a political science degree from KU in 1973 and law and master’s of business administration degrees in 1977. He serves on the board of trustees for the KU Endowment Association and the Cowley County Community College Endowment Assn.

Docking is president and CEO of Union State Bank in Arkansas City and chairman of City National Bank and Trust Co. in Guyman, Okla. He also is a managing member of Docking Development LLC, an oil production company in Oxford and is president of Cowley County Broadcasting Inc., which owns two radio stations.

The $900,000 endowed professorship will provide an annual salary stipend and support for research.

Deepak Datta, who has taught 17 years at KU, will be the first recipient of the professorship. Datta’s research interests include mergers and acquisitions, CEO selection, demographics of top business managers, decision processes and human resource management.

The law donation will provide $20,000 in scholarships. They will be awarded based on need or merit.

The donation is Docking’s first major contribution announced by the KU Endowment Association. His mother, Meredith Docking, has donated $1 million to the Docking Faculty Scholars Fund since 1999. The fund provides awards to assistant or associate professors to retain them at KU.