The majority of positions eliminated Thursday by OU President James Gallogly are in OU's landscaping department, according to OU Public Affairs, although several research programs have also been eliminated.
"Staff positions that have been eliminated are mostly in the area of landscaping with a smaller number of groups from other parts of the university," OU Public Affairs said in an email to The Daily on Thursday afternoon. "As part of a University-wide review of business practices and finances to help reduce costs and improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the University, a review of the landscaping efforts showed areas where we could make better use of funds and still keep the beautiful campus that OU is known for."
Public Affairs said that while the university slows new construction projects on campus, landscaping needs will shift from installing new landscaping to caring for the university's current grounds.
"This will naturally allow the university to reduce the cost of keeping OU beautiful," according to Public Affairs.
The landscaping department will keep the "appropriate number" of personnel. OU Public Affairs did not say how many positions in this department were eliminated.
Brandon Brookins, director of OU landscaping, referred all questions to OU Public Affairs.
OU's Office of Undergraduate Research has also been terminated as part of Thursday's staff elimination.
Susan Walden, former director of the Office of Undergraduate Research, said the program was terminated Thursday, Nov. 1. The program falls under the Office of the Vice President for Research.
Walden said she was informed of this decision around noon Thursday by interim Vice President for Research Randall Hewes, who also serves as dean of OU's Graduate College. Walden and Michael Faneros, who served as her assistant and is also an adjunct faculty member in the department of psychology, lost their positions in the office.
Walden said she believes the six student employees in the office will continue to be paid throughout the end of the semester, although without supervisors, she said she is "not really sure" how that will work.
Walden said everyone was asked to leave their offices immediately, and the only reason she was allowed to stay in her office is because she had appointments with students scheduled throughout the day. Walden said she was canceling appointments for Friday and Saturday.
Walden said she was in "disbelief" because the announcement came "out of the blue," especially given President Gallogly's goal to double research at the university.
"Not only is undergraduate research an important part of their education, it is important for faculty also — they're important contributors to faculty research," Walden said.
Walden said she will maintain her position as a research faculty member in the Gallogly College of Engineering and will be working on projects for the next few months.
OU's Center for Research Program Development and Enrichment has also been closed and some or all of its employees terminated, Walden said.
Walden said there was a representative from OU Human Resources present in the meeting with Hewes during which she was informed of the news.
Justin Daniels, chair of the OU Staff Senate, said he found out about the staff reduction late Wednesday night, and had a meeting with interim vice president of Human Resources Marcy Fleming to ensure that the staff reduction policy is being followed.
Daniels said he was aware that Gallogly's administration was in conversation with departments and colleges around campus regarding their budgets, and that "we were always aware that something like this could happen."
"We’re making sure policy is followed and people are being treated fairly, and after my conversation with interim director of HR, I’m confident that they are being treated fairly," Daniels said. "Obviously it's unfortunate, we don’t want to see anyone released from their jobs but HR appears to be doing absolutely everything they can to make the best of the situation."
Gallogly said in an email to staff and faculty Thursday that the reduction in staff is a necessary cost-cutting measure.
"Moving toward a balanced budget is essential if we are to control tuition costs for our students, afford employee raises to ensure competitive salaries, and be prudent stewards of taxpayer and donor funds," Gallogly said in the email. "We want great students to choose to be Sooners, so we must work hard to make OU as affordable as possible. Even as we navigate these difficult decisions, I am encouraged that I see us continuing to work together to achieve the vision of our university: growing a world-class institution focused on our students and their success."
