The OU Board of Regents will discuss a search committee for a new Honors College dean, additional and ongoing renovations to Jacobson Hall and approval of a project budget for renovations to Max Westheimer Airport’s hangar and infrastructure during its meeting Friday afternoon in Oklahoma City.
The search committee, which would be chaired by Graduate College Dean Randall Hewes, kicks off a national search for the next Honors College dean.
OU’s Honors College has been without a dean since 2017, when Doug Gaffin replaced David Ray to serve as interim dean. Gaffin served as interim dean until July 2020, and Rich Hamerla succeeded him as interim dean.
OU announced in October that Kelvin White, associate professor of information studies and senior associate dean for faculty and community in the Dodge Family College of Arts and Sciences, will succeed Hamerla as the next interim dean of the college, making White the third interim dean since Ray left in 2017.
Also serving on the search committee with Hewes is Honors College faculty member Ben Alpers, associate professor of American intellectual and cultural history. Valerie Watts, OU professor of flute and faculty-at-large representative; John P. Masly, associate director of the OU School of Biological Sciences and faculty senate representative; Lori Kemmet, coordinator for Honors College and National Merit recruitment and Honors College representative; and Jonathan Still, associate director of assessment, research and special projects in the Division of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion and staff senate representative, will also serve on the committee. OU’s Student Government Association representative would be Corbin Walls, an Honors College and Arts and Sciences senior.
Out of the 16 deans on Norman’s campus, six are currently interim or acting deans and a seventh, Katheleen Guzman, will step down at the end of the academic year. OU Daily requested search committee records on those hires, but has only received those for Gaylord College as of January.
A search committee hasn’t been created for the David L. Boren College of International Studies dean. Former dean Scott Fritzen took a job as president of Fulbright University Vietnam in June and Jonathan Stalling was to serve as interim dean through December, according to the September OU Board of Regents agenda.
In September, the regents approved the formation of a search committee for the Gaylord College of Journalism and Mass Communication dean and qualifications were outlined on Oct. 26 for the new dean.
Mike Stice, former dean of Mewbourne College of Earth of Energy, stepped down from his role in November 2022, according to the November OU Board of Regents meeting minutes.
Nicole Campbell stepped down from her role as dean of University College in August 2022 to focus on teaching and scholarship, according to a letter from Senior Vice President and Provost André-Denis Wright.
Martha Banz stepped down as the dean of the College of Professional and Continuing Studies in December 2022.
In 2020, three candidates for Honors College dean were chosen by a search committee and began to meet with students virtually. None were later hired, according to regents minutes.
The Board of Regents will discuss additional renovations and changes to Jacobson Hall. In May 2022, the Regents approved the Jacobson Hall project as part of Harroz’s Campus Master Plan of Capital Improvement Projects for the Norman Campus.
The project is renovating and modernizing the building. The estimated total cost of the project is $15 million with funding from donors. The January agenda includes design development drawings and authorizes OU to contract and make payments not to exceed $11.9 million.
Jacobson Faculty Hall renovation renderings
Also on the agenda, regents will discuss a project budget for renovations and upgrades to the Max Westheimer Airport hangar and infrastructure. The estimated project budget is $5 million with funds coming from a combination of Federal Aviation Administration and Oklahoma Aeronautics Commission grants, donors and university funds.
The university and city have discussed updates and improvements to Max Westheimer, especially as OU transitions to the Southeastern Conference in July and is expecting a wave of visitors. Included in this, Max Westheimer announced Tuesday that The OK Diner would open its first location in its terminal building this spring and that construction on the restaurant is currently under way.
Additional items on the agenda included upgrades and renovations to upgrade Bizzell Memorial Library’s HVAC equipment, with a total project budget of $11 million and donations to the university. Ron and Joan Yagoda gave $5 million to benefit Price College of Business and the Ronnie K. Irani Center for the Creation of Economic Wealth. An anonymous donor gave over $2 million to benefit OU football and baseball, and another anonymous donor gave $2 million to the Stephenson School of Biomedical Engineering.
The agenda also included personnel changes. Elizabeth Roberts, assistant secretary to the OU Board of Regents was promoted to interim executive secretary for the Board of Regents. Timothy Rhodes, who was in that role, resigned in December, according to the agenda.
Tana Fitzpatrick, associate vice president for tribal relations and director of the OU Native Nations Center will take a leave of absence starting in January; the agenda did not make clear who would fill her role in her absence.
The Board of Regents will meet 1 p.m. Friday in the Robert M. Bird Library at the OU Health Sciences Center.
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