After a contentious first few weeks on campus between faculty and administration, the USAO Board of Regents passed a new slate of policies, many of which are effective immediately. The following policies were approved under the watchful eye of a full house seated in the Regents Room, a full overflow space in the Ballroom, and an extra overflow in Dusty’s.
As per the Board of Regents Regular Meeting Agenda, the policies are as follows:
- Approval for the following amendment to the Faculty Handbook: Governance Realignment of the Curriculum Development Committee
- Approval for the following amendment to the Faculty Handbook: Faculty Workload, Overload, and Course Instruction Policy (effective Spring 2027)
- Approval for the following amendment to the Faculty Handbook: Academic Tenure
- Approval for the 90-hour Degree Program
- Approval for the 2026-27 Prior Learning Assessment for Course Catalog
- Approval for the Professional Studies Program Approval Process
- Approval for the Program Modality for Course Catalog
- Approval for the Academic Council Operating Procedures
- Approval for the purchases of Willard Hall Technology Equipment
- Approval for a New HVAC System
- Approval for the Identity Theft and Fraud Prevention Policy
- Approval of Personnel Actions, which concerns Personnel Appointment, Change in Status, Resignations, and Retirements
- Approval for the Academic Calanders for the following academic years: 2027-28, 2028-29, and 2029-30
In her report to the Board of Regents, USAO President Dr. Kayla Hale said updating policies had to do with changing landscape.
“Oklahoma’s higher education is changing, and USAO has to change with it,” Hale said. “I have not proposed closing or eliminating any program at USAO. I cannot promise that will stay true, but I will bring it to everyone under the same transparency I have brought everything.”
Much of the motivation for changes, such as the implementation of workplace readiness, comes from the February 2026 Executive Orders by Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt. The orders can be found here and here.
Tenure was another point of discussion in Hale’s report. Per Stitt’s Executive Orders, he wishes to reduce and potentially eliminate tenure for educators at the postsecondary level. As a result, Hale put a measure in place that staff hired after July 1, 2026, will not be eligible for tenure.
“I am not trying to dilute tenure as has been suggested; I am following a directive by the governor of Oklahoma,” Hale said.
Students responded in protest immediately to the outcomes of the Regents Meeting. Approximately 80 students marched through The Oval Thursday evening, proclaiming they feel left out of the conversation.
“They’re chanting about money, and how they feel money is taking precedent over their experience as a student and over them as people,” said Mason Alldredge, Student Government Association (SGA) President.
Alldredge believes the protest started because of a lack of trust in the administration from the student body.
“It’s clear relationships are broken at USAO, the students and faculty are not aligned with the administration and beyond policy, our university is broken right now,” Alldredge said. “I’m really concerned with what’s ahead as far as relationships between administration and faculty in the student body.”
Nicole Foreman, sophomore theatre major, felt the protest was a way to connect with other students about issues facing her program. Foreman had a scenic painting class last fall with eight students, and believes that, under new policies, that class would not have been offered.
“They would have canceled that class because there wouldn’t have been enough students,” Foreman said.
Foreman also touched on the impacts of that policy on both students and professors.
“I heard there was another part of that where a class could still happen if there were less than 10 students, but the professors would get paid a lot less.” Foreman said. “Which isn’t fair to the professors and it’s not fair to the students because if they’re not getting paid enough to have their attention on that class, then we aren’t getting the kind of education we’re paying for.”
In addition to the protest, a security announcement from Sheppard McConnell, Vice President of Enrollment Management and Student Life, stated an anonymous potential threat was found on the anonymous platform, YikYak. McConnell worked alongside Chickasha Police Department and other members of the university safety team and found there was no active threat to campus. Messaging was sent to all students via the RAVE Safety System notifying them of the findings.
“I want people to be able to have discourse, but when people bring violence, it really lessens things,” McConnel said. “I think it was just someone being silly online, but I’ve got two kids and I fear for that every time they go to school. The better we can keep campus safe, the better I can sleep at night.”
Hale addressed the students as well through a statement regarding campus safety.
“We take every threat of this nature with the upmost seriousness,” Hale said “ From the moment this post was identified, our team began working closely with local law enforcement and cybersecurity officials to investigate its origin, assess its credibility, and take appropriate action. Currently, local law enforcement has assessed the situation and there is NO active threat to campus at this time.”
She further explained the campus safety team will continue to work with these partners to ensure the safety of every student, faculty, and staff member of the campus.
Alldredge also released a statement on behalf of SGA regarding the post.
“We as students are able to engage in discourse when we disagree with changes made on campus. These conversations are important and should happen,” Alldredge said. “However, resulting to violence in any way is unacceptable, illegal, and undermines the ability of students to have their voice be heard.”
This is a follow-up story. The first can be found here.
Whitley Brown is a fourth-year communication major at the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma.
