Following Phil Albert’s resignation from the OU Board of Regents Jan. 24, OU SGA Chair Crispin South said he, along with other OU students and faculty, began inquiring about the appointment of a student regent to complete the remainder of Albert’s term.
Albert resigned amid two years of litigation with a $7.4 million embezzlement allegation from Pelco Structrual, a company he helped found. South tweeted Jan. 25 saying Gov. Kevin Stitt should nominate a student, as other state universities across the country have student regents.
In Texas, 10 universities, including the University of Texas-Austin and Texas A&M University, currently have student regents who serve for one-year terms. The majority of these student regents do not have voting power, according to the Texas Education Code, but they can voice student concerns to the board to sway votes.
“If there was a student in some capacity on the Board of Regents, then they would be able to more effectively lend a student voice and represent student concerns to the board,” South said. “It’s just in line with best practices (with) universities across the country.”
OU Regent Rick Nagel said while he doesn’t know the extent of the legislation in Texas, the idea interests him as he believes it would amplify students’ voices and improve relationships on the board.
According to the education code in Texas, the respective chancellors for each university create an application system for potential student regents where student government associations and chancellors recommend students for the position to the governor, according to the education code. Student regents possess the same responsibilities and opportunities as the rest of the board, however, they cannot vote and are not counted in determining whether a quorum exists. Student regents are also not compensated.
Nagel said Oklahoma can surely build upon Texas’ system, and OU could better implement the system.
Since student regents in Texas typically serve for one year, South said the remainder of Albert’s term provides a unique possibility to appoint a student regent without altering state law.
“If it works out well, then we can legislate it and have it become an actual codified part of Oklahoma state law,” South said. “Being able to provide a student voice on the Board of Regents and have some kind of student input for the biggest decisions that affect our whole university, I think is something that we would really benefit from.”
As a former lobbying force coordinator and vice chair for the University of Oklahoma Student Association — or what’s now known as OU SGA — Nagel said he believes in involving student voices and aims to improve their accessibility to the board.
In one of his first meetings with the board, Nagel said South spoke and joined him in opposition to the 2.75 percent tuition increase approved during the summer of 2021. Nagel said, at the very least, a student government representative should be given a place to speak and offer student opinions in every meeting.
“I think the student government representatives should have a standing place on the agenda to present whatever items that are topical to the students (and) to address issues, raise concerns and provide feedback, positive or negative, so we can act on it,” Nagel said. “The University of Oklahoma Board of Regents need to be perpetually in tune with our customers.”
Nagel said a student regent could build relationships and trust with the board as a whole and act as a conduit between the student body and the board of regents by offering their insights and opinions.
“The important thing really is that there is legitimate student representation on the Board of Regents, and there’s someone responsible and thoughtful and in touch with the student body who ends up on the board,” South said.
OU President Joseph Harroz Jr. announced a few days after Albert’s resignation that OU Board of Regents Vice President for University Governance and Executive Secretary Chris Purcell is retiring. This year’s officers are slated to be elected at the next OU Board of Regents meeting March 8-9, according to an email from a university spokesperson.
