Patrick F. Taylor

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Patrick F. Taylor (June 12, 1937 – November 6, 2004) was an American businessman who founded Taylor Energy Company. He championed education and helped create the Taylor Opportunity Program for Students (TOPS), a Louisiana program that pays college tuition for qualified students. TOPS began in 1998; in its first year it funded 24,163 students for about $54 million. By 2014-15, TOPS supported more than 50,000 students each year at nearly $270 million, with LSU receiving about 40 percent of the funds.

Taylor was born in Beaumont, Texas, and attended The Kinkaid School and Louisiana State University. He was married to Phyllis Miller Taylor from around 1965 until his death, and they had a son named Chris. He died in New Orleans, Louisiana, at age 67 and is buried at the Patrick F. Taylor Cemetery at Circle Bar Ranch in Foxworth, Mississippi.

In 2004, Taylor was listed as No. 234 on the Forbes 400. Shortly before his death, one of his offshore oil platforms was toppled by a mudslide caused by Hurricane Ivan, leading to the Taylor Energy Spill, one of the longest-running oil spills in U.S. waters. He also donated the statue of Iron Mike to the National Museum of the Marine Corps in Quantico, Virginia.

Taylor’s legacy lives on in education. The Patrick F. Taylor Science and Technology Academy in Jefferson, Louisiana, was named in his honor, and in 2007 LSU renamed a major engineering building for him. His wife Phyllis continues to support education, and in 2009 Taylor was inducted into the Louisiana Political Museum and Hall of Fame.