An Update from the Board of Regents
by Connie Reilly, Chair
The weather the past few weeks has been unpredictable – the start to a typical Oklahoma spring! I have enjoyed seeing my bulbs poking up out of the dirt and the flowers blooming on the trees. I feel a sense of renewal this time of year, and after Spring Break I hope you are feeling refreshed and ready to take on the rest of the semester.

For this spring newsletter, we thought you might like to hear what the RUSO regents have been up to over the past several months.

At our last Board meeting at the University of Central Oklahoma, RUSO regents and presidents met with the Chancellor of Higher Education Allison Garrett and her team. Chancellor Garrett’s team presented information on the State Regents Strategic Plan, 2023 Budget, Legislative Priorities, and the Performance Funding Formula. Prior to the meeting, we hosted an evening reception for Oklahoma’s legislators, where they met with university leadership, alumni, and business leaders to hear first-hand the impact that our universities have, particularly on the state’s workforce.

We have known for some time that RUSO graduates do power Oklahoma’s workforce. Recently, with the help of the State Regents’ research and analytics team, we learned that on average, over the last 5 years, RUSO universities collectively conferred: 

·        60% of all teaching degrees,
·        50% of all nursing degrees,
·        47% of all criminal justice and corrections degrees,
·        34% of all business administration, management and operations degrees,
·        34% of all psychology degrees,
·        31% of all accounting degrees, and
·        25% of all social work degrees.

Furthermore, RUSO students stay in the state at a current rate of 86.3%. RUSO is playing a dominant role in providing the critical jobs needed to support the state’s infrastructure for its current and future workforce.

We have recently made a new addition to our staff, Hayley Thompson, our first ever RUSO Government Relations Officer. The addition of this position has allowed us to strengthen the RUSO presence at the Capitol and communicate more effectively with legislators and staff. Hayley is joining us after serving as Vice President of Membership at The State Chamber of Oklahoma. She has an array of experience as a policy liaison including her service as a regulatory consultant for Public Service Company of Oklahoma, as the policy and planning administrator for the Oklahoma Corporation Commission and directing projects as Sagac Public Affairs. Hayley is also a proud RUSO graduate after receiving her bachelor’s degree in communication education and master’s in education administration from the University of Central Oklahoma.

Over the past few months, we have hosted several legislators at our board meetings including, Senator Roger Thompson, Senator Adam Pugh, Senator Dewayne Pemberton and Senator John Haste. All four officials shared their perspective on how Oklahoma’s workforce is improved by a strong and focused higher education system. We look forward to hearing from Representative Ronny Johns at our April 21, 2023 meeting at East Central University.

In addition, regents are hard at work on presidential searches at Northeastern State University and University of Central Oklahoma. Advisory committees have been appointed and Higher Education Leadership Search is administering both searches. The positions have been posted and applications are actively being sought and accepted through the end of March for both positions. Please see the RUSO website for more information.

RUSO regents are a hard-working group of conscientious volunteers who work to govern our system so that you can work to serve the students at your campuses. 
Photos from our Legislative Reception
Thank you to all the legislators, state leaders, faculty,
staff and alumni who joined us last month!
Telemedicine Available for
Faculty & Staff
from Mark Scott, RUSO/OKHEEI Benefits Coordinator

Speak with a doctor- anytime, anywhere!
Getting sick after hours or on weekends used to mean a long, costly trip to the emergency room or urgent care center. Now, with your virtual visits benefit, provided by AETNA TelaDoc or BCBS of Oklahoma MDLive, the doctor is in 24/7/365. And you don’t have to leave the comfort of your own home.
 
Virtual visits allow you to consult a doctor for non-emergency situations by phone, mobile app or online video anytime, anywhere. 
 
 
Why virtual visits?
·        24/7 access to board-certified doctors
·        Access via phone, online video or mobile app from almost anywhere
·        Average wait time of less than 20 minutes
·         If needed, get a prescription sent to your local pharmacy
 
Virtual visit doctors can treat a variety of non-emergency conditions, including:
·        Allergies
·        Asthma
·        Cold/flu
·        Ear infections
·        Fever
·        Headache
·        Insect bites
·        Nausea
·        Pink eye
·        Rash
·        Sinus infections
 
Activate your telemedicine account by choosing one of the following options:
 
For ECU, SWOSU, SE, NSU and NWOSU:
·        Call MDLive at 888-976-4081
·        Go to MDLIVE.com/bcbsok
·        Text BCBSOK to 635-483
·        Download the MDLIVE app
 
For UCO Employees:
·        Call MDLive at (855) 848-8813
·        Go to MDLIVE.com/hch
·        Download the MDLIVE App
RUSO Presidential Search
RUSO's Board of Regents have begun the presidential searches at Northeastern State University and University of Central Oklahoma. Advisory committees have been appointed and applications are actively being sought and accepted through March 31 for both positions. Find more information at RUSO.edu.
RUSO drives Oklahoma's Workforce
Southwestern begins Pharmacy Degree Partnership Program
Amid a nationwide shortage of pharmacists, Southwestern Oklahoma State University has signed a transfer partnership with Rose State College to create a pipeline to the profession and graduate more pharmacists in Oklahoma. Read more
UCO receives $30,000 to advance engineering workforce
The University of Central Oklahoma’s School of Engineering received a $30,000 grant from Boeing to advance its Reverse Engineering and Rapid Prototyping Lab. The grant helps advance Oklahoma’s aerospace industry which utilizes reverse engineering and is critical to our state's economy. Read more
RUSO Student Spotlight
Northwestern's Kelsey Ripperger attends United Nations event
Ripperger, a Heritage Tourism and Conservation student at Northwestern Oklahoma State University, was chosen to attend a United Nations event in Bangkok, Thailand in the fall semester. The summit focused on how economies can advance while preserving the ecosystems that surround them. Read more
Southeastern's William Lowell Putnam Mathematical Competition Participants
Last fall, three students from Southeastern Oklahoma State University competed in the 83rd annual William Lowell Putnam Mathematical Competition, the preeminent event of its kind for undergraduate college students in the United States and Canada. 
Representing Southeastern were Caleb Luna, Joash Patton and James Dry. Read more
RUSO Alumni Impact Oklahoma
East Central Graduate Leads Oklahoma’s
American Indian Chamber of Commerce
Oklahoma’s American Indian Chamber of Commerce President, Bailey Walker, started his career as an intern for the Chickasaw Nations Commerce Division before settling into his current role. Additionally, he serves as the Tribal Relations Director for Tribal Diagnostics, a Native American owned and operated diagnostics laboratory committed to providing quality and affordable health screenings for Oklahomans. Bailey says East Central University was the catalyst for his success. Read more
Northeastern Graduate Excels as
Nonprofit Leader
Melissa Walton graduated from a small high school in, Verdigris, Oklahoma, before enrolling as a family and consumer science major with a minor in marketing at Northeastern Oklahoma State University. NSU launched Walton’s career in the nonprofit sector where she makes a difference in the lives of vulnerable Oklahomans every day. Read more
Great Happenings at Your Regional University
Southeastern Oklahoma State University’s Aviation Sciences Institute brought almost 300 prospective students to Aviation Day this semester, the institute's largest recruitment event! Southeastern fosters the growth of tomorrow’s leaders in Oklahoma’s aerospace industry that generates $12.5 billion in economic output annually. Learn more.

This spring marked the 2nd Annual Supply Chain and Logistics Conference at Northeastern. The event was created to address the critical need for a skilled workforce in the growing supply chain and logistics industry in Oklahoma. Students, business leaders, experts, higher education and legislative officials gathered at the conference in March to advance the future of this top 100 critical occupation in Oklahoma. Learn more.

The Oka’ Institute and master’s students in Water Resource Policy and Management at East Central University traveled to Kenya. Students exchanged ideas on how to best preserve water and natural resources in environments experiencing drought with Jaramogi Oginga Odinga University of Science and Technology students. The Oka’ Institute bridges the gap between sustainable water management and economic development. Learn more.

SWOSU’s Engineering Technology program allowed Colton Parkinson to reach for the stars. While completing his bachelor of science degree in manufacturing engineering technology, Colton had multiple internship opportunities including three with NASA at the Kennedy Space Center. Upon graduation, Colton was offered jobs with NASA, Boeing, and Northrop Grumman but he stayed local and is currently the Facility Engineer and Collections Manager for the Stafford Air & Space Museum in Weatherford. Learn more.

NWOSU's Department of Social Work celebrated Social Work Month in March with the theme “Social Work Breaks Barriers” to highlight how social workers have enriched society by empowering people and communities to overcome hurdles. Social work is one of the fastest-growing professions in the United States. More than 800,000 social workers are expected to be employed nationwide by 2030. Learn more.

The University of Central Oklahoma’s Child Study Center recently received a five-star rating from the Oklahoma Department of Human Services. The program received a high rating for curriculum, child outcomes, learning environments, teacher-child interactions, professional development and training. UCO’s Child Study Center is just one exemplary feature of the College of Education and Professional Studies that attracts thousands of prospective teachers every year. Learn more.
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