OU President David L. Boren said he is scheduled to return to work Sept. 26, more than six weeks after having surgery for a herniated disc.
"I can hardly wait," Boren said Monday. "I've really missed my class."
Nancy Mergler, OU provost and senior vice president, said Boren has been working with campus administrators over the phone to help run the university while recovering.
"We missed him, but we have been in communication with him during his recuperation period," Mergler said.
Boren said he managed his workload during recent weeks from his bed with the aid of his secretary. Boren said his condition during the first week after his surgery forced him from his work, but he has recently been able to return in a limited capacity.
"I've still been working a lot at home," Boren said. "At first [doctors] wouldn't let me sit up but about two hours a day, then four hours, now about five or six hours a day."
Boren said he slowly progressed from using a walker to using a cane and is working toward walking wholly unassisted again.
Boren said various OU administrators were instrumental in running OU during his recuperation period.
"I'm so lucky that we have such a great team at the university," Boren said. "I get credit for things that the whole team does. Some people ask, 'What will happen if you get hit by a truck?' Everything will go fine."
Mergler said she can't speculate on how smooth Boren's transition back to office work will be.
"I think he'll play it by ear depending on how he feels," Mergler said.
Boren said with the extra time he has spent recuperating, he has been able to focus on various campus issues. Boren said the relaxing of tuition and enrollment policies for students affected by Hurricane Katrina was one of his main concerns over the past few weeks.
He said though he has been able to tend to certain issues, his recent condition has forced him to miss some events at OU.
Boren said he regretted missing New Sooner Convocation at the beginning of this semester. It was the first time Boren missed the event since his tenure as OU president began.
Boren said he has not yet seen his political science class, leaving Shad Satterthwaite, assistant professor, to teach alone. Boren said he typically splits the teaching load with Satterthwaite 60 percent to 40 percent, respectively.
"Since he's been doing whole days for me for the past six weeks, I imagine for the next few periods I'll be doing the heavy lifting," Boren said.
Ben Stewart, international business senior, said he waited a year just to take political science with Boren. Stewart said upon attending his political science class this fall, he was a little disappointed when he initially found out about Boren's absence, but Satterthwaite has done a good job.
"Obviously, I'm really excited for him to come back," Stewart said.
Boren said he was saddened by the recent death of OU freshman John Bartholomew Betow and regretted being unable to comfort Betow's family in person. Boren said Betow's father formerly interned for him in Washington D.C. Boren said he wished he could have met with Betow's father in his time of need, considering his relationship with the Betow family.
"All that I was able to do this time was talk to him over the phone while he was still at the hospital," Boren said.
Boren, who underwent surgery Aug. 12, said he experienced pain in his legs a few weeks prior to be being hospitalized.
"I'm usually the kind of person that thinks 'Oh, I can tough it through. It'll get better,'" Boren said. "It beat me this time."
