Accreditation

Home » Resource Room » Self-Study » Report »

Acknowledgments and Thanks

Across campus, faculty, staff, students, and administration have supported the accreditation self-study. Many individuals made substantial contributions for which we express our sincere appreciation. The members of the Accreditation Steering Committee^0.1 and many other individuals exhibited significant effort on a variety of tasks associated with the self-study and the site visit. We thank them. The university is honored to have the engagement of such individuals.

We are grateful for your participation,

Accreditation Core Team

Brenda Masters, Director

Support Group

Amjad Ayoubi

Brenda Brown

Gail E. Gates

Lee E. Bird

Pam Lumpkin

Doug Reed

Criterion Chairs

David S. Buchanan

Scott Gelfand

Jonathan C. Comer

Nigel R. Jones

Lowell Caneday

Larry Sanders

---

Introduction

Oklahoma State University^0.2 (OSU) welcomed this opportunity to assess its progress in carrying out its mission and achieving its many goals in preparation for this self-study report for OSU's Accreditation Review by the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association. Continued accreditation is necessary for OSU to maintain the eligibility of its students for federal grants and loans and for the university to continue to be recognized by employers, governmental agencies, professional licensing boards, and other institutions of higher learning as an outstanding university that provides excellent educational opportunities. We believe this report demonstrates that OSU meets and surpasses the Higher Learning Commission's criteria for accreditation,^0.3 and we are pleased to share our findings with the OSU community, its constituents, and supporters.

In evaluating OSU's effectiveness and performance, we established the following goals for our self-study report:

• To complete a thorough and realistic assessment of OSU's effectiveness in meeting its missions and goals.
• To involve the university community in the self-study process and to inform the community of the report's findings.
• To gain a clear understanding of OSU's current status and the challenges facing the university in the future.

The report contains in-depth descriptions, analyses, and assessments of OSU's effectiveness in meeting its stated goals and the Higher Learning Commission's requirements for accreditation. The report demonstrates that despite difficult economic conditions and the variety of challenges any university faces in a changing world, OSU is more than meeting its commitments and is making strides toward its goal of being recognized nationally as a premier research and academic institution.

Higher Education in Oklahoma

Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education

The Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education^0.4 (OSRHE) is the central policy and coordinating board for Oklahoma's system of higher education. The board prescribes academic standards of higher education, determines functions and courses of study at state colleges and universities, grants degrees, recommends to the state legislature budget allocations for each college and university, and recommends proposed fees within limits set by the legislature. OSRHE also manages 23 scholarship and special programs. In cooperation with the Office of State Finance, the board operates OneNet,^0.5 the state's information and telecommunications network for education and government. OSRHE also oversees the Oklahoma Guaranteed Student Loan Program,^0.6 which guarantees loans made to students by the private sector. While the OSRHE is the coordinating board of control for all institutions in the State System of Higher Education, governing boards of regents and boards of trustees are responsible for the operation and management of each state-system institution or higher education program

Board of Regents for the Oklahoma Agricultural and Mechanical Colleges

The Board of Regents for the Oklahoma Agricultural and Mechanical Colleges^0.7 (OSU/A&M) is the governing board directly responsible for the operation of OSU and its constituent budget agencies — the OSU Center for Health Sciences, OSU-Okmulgee, OSU-Oklahoma City, OSU-Tulsa, the OSU Center for Veterinary Health Sciences, the OSU Agricultural Experiment Station, and the OSU Cooperative Extension Service. The OSU/A&M Regents also govern Connors State College of Agriculture and Applied Science in Warner; Langston University, Langston; Northeastern Oklahoma Agricultural and Mechanical College, Miami; and Oklahoma Panhandle State University, Goodwell.

The board consists of nine members,^0.8 one of whom is the president of the State Board of Agriculture. The remaining eight members are appointed by the governor, with the advice and consent of the state senate. Except for the president of the State Board of Agriculture, board members are appointed for eight-year terms to numbered positions representing congressional districts, with two at-large appointments.^0.9

The OSU/A&M Board's powers to govern are constitutional and include, but are not limited to, those enumerated in Title 70, Oklahoma Statutes, Section 3412, and other laws and judicial decisions of the State of Oklahoma. Its functions are legislative in the establishment of all general policies affecting the institutions it governs and their relationship to one another and in the prescribing of rules and regulations needed to bring these policies into effect. Its judicial functions are limited to acting as a court of final settlement for matters that cannot be satisfactorily adjudicated by the presidents of the colleges. Its executive power is delegated in most instances to the presidents of the institutions and their authorized administrators.

Internal Audits

The OSU/A&M Regents' Department of Internal Audits^0.10 is solely responsible to the OSU/A&M Board of Regents in the manner the board prescribes. Internal auditing headquarters are located on the OSU-Stillwater campus. The programs and scope of work conducted by internal auditors are prescribed and approved by the OSU/A&M Board of Regents. All internal audit reports are submitted at the same time to the board and to the president of the institution involved. Institutional administrators provide written responses to all internal audit reports.

Overview of the University

The story of Oklahoma State University officially began on Christmas Eve, 1890, in the McKennon Opera House in Oklahoma's territorial capital of Guthrie when Territorial Governor George W. Steele signed legislation establishing an Oklahoma Agricultural and Mechanical College (OAMC) as a land-grant college in Payne County. ^0.11

After much argument, Stillwater was finally selected as the location. The first students assembled for classes on December 14, 1891 even though there were no buildings, books, or curricula. Students attended classes in the Stillwater Congregational Church. The original campus consisted of 200 acres donated by four local homesteaders. After the college received title to the property, volunteers burned off the tall grass and used teams of mules and horses to plow the virgin land. Temporary buildings were soon constructed, but it became increasingly clear that OAMC needed a permanent facility.

Through the efforts of the town of Stillwater and many local and state residents, Stillwater was able to issue $10,000 in bonds for the construction of OAMC's first building. These funds paid for construction of the Central Building, now called Old Central,^0.12 which was built at a cost of $14,998 and completed in 1896. The territorial legislature made up the difference in funds. In 1896, OAMC held its first commencement, with six male graduates. By 1918, OAMC had 16 brick buildings.

Though often referred to as the “agricultural” college, OAMC always focused on developing a well-rounded curriculum. In the beginning, the college offered a major only in agriculture, but specializations in engineering and other areas soon developed. By the 1910s, graduates were no longer limiting their careers to farming and business but were seeking professions as attorneys and medical doctors. Several organized schools of study existed, including engineering, commerce and marketing, education, science and literature, agriculture, home economics, and veterinary medicine. There was no graduate college, but students could continue their college careers by taking courses at the master's level.

By the mid-1950s, the OAMC community wanted to move to the “next level.” The college was ready for university status. In 1957, the institution was renamed the Oklahoma State University for Agriculture and Applied Science. During the next three decades, OSU would build academic programs^0.13 to match its new status. Enrollment more than doubled from 10,385 in 1957 to more than 23,000 in the 1980s. OSU also would become a statewide university system as it added technical branches in Okmulgee in 1946 and Oklahoma City in 1961. A legislative act that took effect on July 1, 1980 officially changed the name to Oklahoma State University. The Oklahoma College of Osteopathic Medicine, now called the OSU Center for Health Sciences, became part of the OSU system in 1988. In addition, OSU has a presence in all Oklahoma counties because of its Agricultural Experiment Stations and Cooperative Extension Service programs.

In November 1998, the Commission on Institutions of Higher Education of the North Central Association approved OSU-Stillwater's request for an additional instructional site in Tulsa to provide upper-division and graduate coursework. Since 1999, OSU-Tulsa^0.14 has experienced significant growth in enrollment (2,600 in Fall 2004), degree programs (more than 80 undergraduate and graduate degree programs), and full-time resident faculty (48 in Fall 2004). Courses and degree programs are shared by OSU-Stillwater and OSU-Tulsa. Tulsa-based faculty members are appointed and tenured through their academic departments in Stillwater, and research initiatives are closely coordinated between the campuses. The institution, Oklahoma State University, comprises OSU-Stillwater and OSU-Tulsa. The OSU System^0.15 includes OSU-Okmulgee, OSU-OKC, and OSU-CHS in addition to OSU-Stillwater and OSU-Tulsa.

Today, OSU is one of two comprehensive, research, and doctoral-granting universities in Oklahoma. Doctoral degrees are granted through the Graduate College,^0.16 the Center for Veterinary Health Sciences,^0.17 and the Center for Health Sciences. Enrollment at OSU-Stillwater and OSU-Tulsa currently averages about 23,000, with approximately 4,500 faculty and staff. System-wide enrollment is about 32,600. The OSU System had a record graduating class in 2004, with 5,000 degree candidates. The previous record for OSU was set in 1978-79, with 4,429 graduates. The Institutional Snapshot^0.18 contains further institutional details.

Significant Achievements at OSU, 1995-2005

OSU has made significant gains in a number of areas during the past ten years. These include a successful fundraising campaign; partnerships with community colleges; increased graduation and retention rates; national recognition as a high-quality, but affordable, university; national rankings for several academic and research programs; development of a nationally recognized scholars program; improved evaluation processes; and the development of the university's first system-wide strategic plan.

Fundraising

The OSU Foundation^0.19 began preliminary planning for a major capital campaign in early 1994. As part of the planning process, the various constituencies on the campus were consulted concerning their most pressing needs that could logically be funded through private funds. The major budget units of the university were then each assigned specific financial target amounts that they were expected to raise as a part of this campaign. After reviewing all of this input, it was decided to launch a campaign to raise $125 million.

By October 24, 1997, the initial campaign goal of $125 million had been exceeded and was increased to $206 million. The “Bringing Dreams to Life Campaign” officially closed on June 30, 2000 with commitments of $260,483,538, which represented over 200% of the original goal of $125 million. Campaign gifts had provided for 15 new endowed chairs, 12 new endowed professorships, 16 new endowed lectureships, 19 new Distinguished Presidential Scholarships, and five new Distinguished Graduate Fellowships.

Thirty-nine commitments involving pledges of $1 million or more were received during the campaign. More than 52,000 donors participated in the campaign with 23,835 of them being first-time contributors.

Partnerships with Community Colleges

During the past five years, OSU-Tulsa and OSU-Stillwater developed strong partnerships with Tulsa Community College (TCC) and Northern Oklahoma College (NOC). In spring 2002, TCC began offering courses on the OSU-Tulsa campus. OSU and TCC faculty developed numerous “2+2” agreements to allow seamless articulation between the two institutions.^0.20 In fall 2003, NOC opened a facility adjacent to the OSU-Stillwater campus. NOC faculty offer developmental courses in mathematics, English composition, reading, and science for OSU students requiring remediation in these areas. Financial aid consortium agreements are offered for students who enroll at TCC, NOC, and OSU.

Students who are not admissible to OSU may enroll at community colleges, including TCC and NOC. In 2003, OSU and NOC signed an agreement for the Gateway Program, which allows NOC students to live in OSU housing and to participate with OSU students in a wide range of programs, services, and activities on the OSU campus. According to OSRHE policy, courses taken at NOC, TCC, and other community colleges transfer to OSU, and students who complete at least 24 hours of college credit and earn a 2.25 grade point average at community colleges may transfer to OSU. Regular meetings are held between OSU, TCC, and NOC administrators and faculty to coordinate activities.

Before the Gateway Program was initiated, some OSU faculty, particularly members of the Faculty Council, raised concerns about the extent to which courses offered at NOC would be of equivalent quality to similar courses at OSU and the measures that might be taken to ensure common standards for Gateway and general education students. Members of the administration and representatives from Faculty Council developed an acceptable agreement. Equivalency measures are indicated in the “Memorandum of Understanding.”^0.21 Some faculty, however, have voiced concerns that some provisions of the Memorandum of Understanding between OSU and NOC regarding general education classes are not being implemented as the faculty understood them.

Scholar Development and Recognition

When OSU's first merit-based scholarship office was established in 1988, one of the many responsibilities involved the recruitment and mentoring of students who could compete for national and international scholarships, such as the Rhodes, Marshall, and Truman. In 1999 OSU established a separate Office of Scholar Development and Recognition^0.22 (OSDR). The philosophy of the office consists of two major tenets:

• OSU students will be given every opportunity to compete equally and successfully for major awards.
• All those who participate will enjoy a more enriching general education, regardless of the outcome of competitions, thereby affirming the effort to win awards.

In the year 2000, OSU was recognized by the Harry S. Truman Foundation as a Truman Honor Institution for its efforts to cultivate academic and leadership skills among its top undergraduates. Over the past 11 years, OSU students won nine Truman Scholarships, ranking among the nation's elite in this competition (13 overall since 1978). OSU had two Goldwater Scholars in 2004, giving the university 12 Goldwater Scholars. Other recent successes include having two students named to the USA Today All-American first team in the last two years and having a student win the prestigious Pickering Scholarship in Foreign Affairs.^0.23 Also, the OSDR director is a founding officer for the National Association of Fellowships Advisors and served two terms as president of the new organization. OSDR offerings include the following:

• Wentz Scholarships and Research Projects: Praised as a national model, these programs address two very important groups of students — academically successful student leaders and student researchers. First, $2,500 scholarships are given to 100 student leaders who also excel academically. Second, $4,000 awards for research projects are granted to 40-50 students who submit proposals with faculty mentors. Nearly 500 undergraduates have participated in the last decade.
• Scholar Training Seminar: This course, Windows to the World, taught by the director of scholar development, is a current events-based, one-hour honors seminar that focuses on improving writing and interviewing skills for freshmen and sophomores who might eventually compete for major awards.
• Summer Travel Support: The office sponsors summer courses at Oxford and Cambridge for outstanding students. In addition, the office funds travel for other students who competed for awards to attend seminars, institutes, etc., around the country and the world.

Honors College

The College of Arts and Sciences^0.24 (CAS) inaugurated its honors program in the mid-1960s, and the first bachelor's degrees with honors were awarded in 1969. The University Honors Program was initiated in 1989 to provide enhanced educational opportunities to outstanding students from all of the six undergraduate colleges.

The University Honors Program became The Honors College^0.25 in 2000 when final approval was given by the OSRHE.

The goal of The Honors College is to provide an enhanced and supportive learning environment for outstanding undergraduate students enrolled in OSU's undergraduate colleges. The Honors College relies on active involvement by faculty who are noted for their excellence in undergraduate teaching. They teach small honors sections of regular catalog courses, interdisciplinary honors courses, and special honors seminars and often offer opportunities for undergraduate research. Special honors advising is provided by faculty and professional staff who themselves have earned honors program or honors college degrees. OSU seeks to meet or exceed the criteria of the National Collegiate Honors Council^0.26 (NCHC) for a fully developed honors program.

The number of active participants in The Honors College has increased significantly over the last decade. In the 2004 fall semester, the 869 active participants in The Honors College represented 162 Oklahoma communities, 23 other states, and 10 foreign nations.

OSU is recognized as a leader in the National Collegiate Honors Council, an organization with approximately 800 institutional members. The OSU Honors director served as 1998-99 NCHC president. Four OSU honors students and the assistant director have served on the executive committee in the past 10 years.

Institute for Teaching and Learning Excellence

In January 2005, OSU combined Educational Television Services, the Audio Visual Center, and the Faculty Support Center to form a new Institute for Teaching and Learning Excellence.^0.27 An advisory board also was formed. It is envisioned that this new institute will offer workshops, seminars, a help desk, and one-on-one assistance from instructional designers for OSU faculty. Training and mentoring for new faculty as part of a teaching academy and professional development for continuing faculty who wish to improve their teaching skills are both functions of the new institute. It will provide software, equipment, and incentives designed to inspire and enable faculty to add technology to traditional classroom courses, add an online component to a course, and convert traditional courses to a format that can be delivered electronically. The institute will provide equipment, software, and training to prepare faculty to teach using team-based learning techniques that will enable students to work in groups to accomplish results that may not be realized by individuals. The institute will conduct research into faculty uses of distributed computing and new uses for Internet Two.

Other Highlights

The following achievements and recognition that have occurred since 2000 are just a few examples of the high level of academic achievement at OSU and the efficient and cost-effective services it provides to its constituents.

Top Value in America: Consumers Digest magazine named OSU as one of America's top 20 values in public higher education. The magazine reviewed 3,500 colleges and universities to rank 75 schools as the top values in the United States. The rankings, published in the June 2004 issue, are based on several attributes that validate or define the institution's academic prowess balanced against the annual cost of tuition and room and board.

Top Western School: The Princeton Review selected OSU as one of its Best Western Colleges for two consecutive years. The listing showcases the top colleges and universities in 15 western states.

Top 10 Program: U.S. News & World Report ranked the College of Education's Vocational and Technical Education program in the top 10 nationally. The top programs are selected by deans of education throughout the nation.

Math Department Recognition: OSU's Math Department has been recognized by the American Mathematics Association as one of four innovative programs in the nation. The department has produced five Sloan Fellows, comparable to the number from MIT.

Engineering Success: OSU's School of Industrial Engineering was the first such program west of the Mississippi and is home to two members of the National Academy of Engineers.

Good Chemistry: OSU's Chemistry Department boasts eight Oklahoma Chemists of the Year, eight Oklahoma Scientists of the Year, and four Oklahoma Foundation for Excellence Medal of Excellence Award winners.

Physics Fellows: OSU's Physics Department has six faculty recognized as Fellows of the American Physical Society and three faculty who are Fellows of the Noble Research Foundation.

OSU Chosen for Senior Success Seminar: OSU's top seniors were invited to participate in the first “President's Senior Success Seminar” to be offered in the U.S. The January 2005 seminar featured Louis Blair, executive director of the Truman Foundation in Washington, D.C., and several former OSU scholars who advised the seniors about life and the educational world beyond OSU.

Tylenol Scholarships: OSU students Danielle Davies and Jacoby Dewald were two of only 10 college students from across the nation to receive the 2004 $10,000 Tylenol Scholarship for students in health-related fields.

Valedictorians: OSU is home to nearly 1,100 Oklahoma valedictorians.

A Repeat for All-USA College Academic Team: In 2005 for the third consecutive year, an OSU student was named to the USA Today All-USA College Academic Team. OSU Student Government Association President Joe St. John, a senior business major, was selected. Cassie Mitchell was chosen in 2004 and Bryan McLaughlin in 2003.

Best Ag-Bio Engineering Student: The American Society of Agricultural Engineers honored OSU student Candice Johnson with its Student Engineer of the Year scholarship. This award is given to the outstanding agricultural/biological engineering undergraduate student in the United States or Canada.

The Highest Doctoral Honor: OSU zoology doctoral student Jerry Husak received a prestigious $10,000 National Science Foundation Doctoral Dissertation Improvement Grant, the highest honor a doctoral student in science in the United States can receive.

International Engineering Prize: OSU School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering students took first and second place in both the 2004 and the 2005 International Design, Build, Fly Contest. OSU is the only university to have back-to-back first and second place wins at the competition.

International Competitors: OSU's architecture students have won more national and international competitions than any other school in the nation except the University of Illinois.

Academic Achievement of Student-Athletes:

• Ninety-seven percent of the OSU senior student-athletes who exhausted their eligibility in 2003 graduated.
• OSU had 22 individual Academic All-Americans/Scholar-Athletes, the second highest in the Big 12 Conference.
• Eight of the 16 OSU athletic teams were nationally recognized as All-Academic Teams — an OSU record.
• Ninety-seven OSU student-athletes made the Academic All-Big 12 Team (honoring those with 3.0 grade point averages and higher), the highest number in OSU's history.
• Men's basketball, men's golf, softball, and wrestling either led the Big 12 Conference or tied for first in Academic All-Big 12 selections.
• Two hundred and seven student-athletes earned Big 12 Commissioner's Honor Roll recognition (3.0 GPA and higher) in the 2002 fall semester, while 206 student-athletes earned this distinction in the 2003 spring semester.

Best College Newspaper: Both the Columbia Scholastic Press Association and the Associated Collegiate Press recognize OSU's Daily O'Collegian as one of the top collegiate newspapers in the country.

Best Recreational Center: The newly renovated Colvin Center, which reopened in fall 2004, is one of the top recreational student facilities in the world.

Nationally Recognized Transit System: The OSU-Stillwater Community Transit System was the cover story in an issue of BusRide Magazine, a leading trade publication of the motor coach tour, charter, and transit bus industry.

Trading Floor Provides Rare Opportunity: OSU's Spears School of Business Trading Floor is one of only a few such facilities in the nation. The state-of-the-art trading floor gives students hands-on experience in managing information to assess financial risk.

New Student Housing: Since 2000, OSU has spent more than $150 million renovating and building new student housing that includes all modern amenities, high-speed internet connections, living rooms, kitchen areas, and private bedrooms and baths.

Championship Radio: KOSU, the campus affiliate of National Public Radio, has won more than 200 major broadcast journalism awards, including 11 national championships for broadcast journalism excellence. KOSU recently added a second broadcast facility to expand service to northeast Oklahoma.

Best Arena in the Nation: OSU's Historic Gallagher-Iba Arena was named the top collegiate basketball venue in the nation by CBS Sportsline.

Best Golf Facility: OSU's Karsten Creek Golf Course, designed by Tom Fazzio, is considered one of the best in the nation.

Championship Teams: OSU men's basketball won the Big 12 Championship and reached the Final Four in 2004. They won the Big 12 Championship again in 2005 and went to the Sweet Sixteen. The Oklahoma State Wrestling Team won the NCAA Championship in 2004 and 2005. Wrestling Coach John Smith was named Big 12 Coach of the Year, and Wrestler Steve Mocco was named NCAA Player of the Year. OSU's Golf Team is also top-ranked in the country.

Largest Individual Gift: OSU's largest gift from an individual was a $70 million commitment from OSU alumnus Boone Pickens. Part of the gift was to complete funding for phase one of the football stadium renovation project, and part of the gift also created a trust that will result in a $15 million general university academic scholarship fund.

Largest Corporate Gift: OSU's largest corporate gift to date is a $6 million commitment from ConocoPhillips for the ConocoPhillips OSU Alumni Center and other campus priorities. The Alumni Center is scheduled to open in the summer of 2005.

Substantial Gift for College of Business: The OSU College of Business Administration was renamed the William S. Spears School of Business in honor of the man who gave the university a substantial academic gift of an undisclosed amount. Spears' multi-million dollar gift, much of which will qualify for state matching funds, will provide faculty chairs, fellowships, and endowments that will enable the college to retain and attract additional outstanding faculty.

Old Landmark Made New: The Atherton Hotel at OSU completed a $5 million revitalization that converted it into one of the finest hotels in the state. The funds were arranged through a partnership between Student Affairs and the Student Union. The hotel serves as a hands-on classroom for OSU Hotel and Restaurant Administration students. OSU is one of only five U.S. universities to offer hospitality students a hotel laboratory on campus. The Atherton is one of two hotels in Oklahoma selected for membership with the National Trust for Historic Preservation of Historic Hotels of America.

Portal Technology: OSU's Information Technology Division received a $1,087,000 grant from CampusEAI, in conjunction with the Oracle Corporation, to underwrite costs for a one-stop internet portal that gives students a single web access point to check grades, pay bursar bills, see class schedules, enroll in classes, drop classes, send and receive e-mail, see a calendar of campus events, sign up for services such as parking and All-Sports tickets, and even take online courses.

1995 Evaluation Report Concerns

The 1995 evaluation team focused the attention of the university community on six areas of concern, listed below:

1. While OSU has taken a number of significant steps during the past year of transition, it has not yet fully developed a visible central core of clear institutional values, directions, and plans — with critical self-assessment — all linked to but transcending collegiate programs and goals.
2. Faculty salaries continue to be very low, and although some ameliorative steps have recently been taken, the problem of salary compression remains.
3. There is not as yet full understanding of, buy-into, and implementation of assessment as a means of program improvement.
4. The library has a serious space problem, noted even in the NCA report of 1985-86, which has not yet been solved, though a temporary resolution is under way.
5. The large unfunded liability in the state retirement system, and the projected move away from TIAA-CREF, are of serious concern to faculty and staff and may cause significant recruiting problems in the future.
6. There is a pronounced under-representation of women and persons of color in middle and upper administrative positions and in upper faculty ranks, though a recent matching fund for minority faculty positions is a step in the right direction. The institution could be doing more to build pools of women and minority candidates internally for key positions.

Progress on Responses to 1995 Concerns

Values, Directions, Plans

In regard to the HLC's concern about the lack of a visible central core of clear institutional values, directions, and plans, it should be noted that during the last decade, all OSU entities developed mission and vision statements, goals, values, and/or strategic plans.^0.28 Following the arrival of OSU System CEO and President David J. Schmidly^0.29 in the spring of 2003, a system-wide strategic planning process was begun.^0.30 A steering committee, composed of faculty, staff, and administrators from all of the OSU campuses, was appointed to oversee the process.^0.31 The first step was a retreat with the OSU/A&M Board of Regents and all senior administrators in the OSU system in order to develop a first draft of the system mission and vision statements, core values, and strategic goals. The subsequent process included the entire OSU system, with plans for the system, the five campuses,^0.32 all vice presidential areas and their component units, and all college and academic departments.^0.33 A common set of core values was adopted for use by each unit, and each constructed its own mission and vision statements and strategic goals. Furthermore, each plan (278 in total) developed objectives and critical success factors.

The planning process occupied approximately 15 months before the documentation was submitted to the president for presentation to the OSU/A&M Board of Regents. During that time, plans went through an iterative review process in which members of the steering committee and various task forces, composed of faculty, staff, and students, reviewed the plans and provided feedback to the various units. In addition, there was a series of town hall meetings in which the president presented the plan to all OSU employees and the public. Meetings were held for employees on each campus, and public meetings were held in Oklahoma City, Tulsa, and Stillwater. The Stillwater meeting also was broadcast to numerous sites around the state. Each town hall meeting included an extensive question and answer period. The plan also was posted on the OSU Homepage, and the public had an opportunity to provide feedback.

The final strategic plan was presented to the OSU/A&M Board of Regents for its acceptance during the September 2004 meeting. It also was announced at that time that a University Planning Council^0.34 would be established in order to sustain planning as an ongoing process and to ensure that the university and each of its component units would be accountable to the plans as developed and revised.

Faculty Salaries

In an ongoing effort to address salary issues, OSU has continued to implement faculty raise programs ranging from three to six percent annually when possible, including special equity pools for faculty. Reductions in state appropriations totaling more than twelve percent in FY2003 and FY2004 made faculty raises impossible. In FY2004, however, the administration used a pool of $400,000 to give special awards to (1) bring all tenured and tenure-track faculty salaries up to a minimum of $40,000 and (2) to reward outstanding faculty. Additionally, a one-time supplement of $500 was given to all continuously employed faculty and staff in FY2004.

OSU continues to focus on raising salaries to the Big 12 average. The administration contracted with an outside consultant to compare each academic college with a selected peer group. Based on the results of this study,^0.35 the administration identified the funds needed to fill faculty positions that were left vacant throughout years when OSU experienced cut-backs in appropriations, as well as to reward the current faculty, and to increase faculty numbers.

The “Restore, Reward, and Grow”^0.36 initiative is a program developed under the leadership of President Schmidly. It began in FY2005 and will continue through FY2015. This program came about as a result of the OSU Strategic Plan and is necessary in order to accomplish the goals set by the plan. The intent of the program is to strengthen the faculty in terms of both quality and quantity.

The first phase will restore the 100 faculty positions left vacant as a result of state appropriation reductions in recent years. This phase was initiated in FY2005 when the Provost and Senior Vice President authorized 25 new faculty positions for recruitment. An additional 25 positions have been authorized for recruitment in FY2006 and authorization will continue through FY2007 and FY2008 at the rate of 25 new faculty positions per year for a total of 100 positions. The rationale for this phase is that current faculty-to-student ratios are not competitive with peer institutions. This situation has come about in the last decade because enrollment has grown at a rate three times that of the faculty.

The second phase will increase the average faculty salary at OSU over a period of 10 years to the level of the peer average. A recent consultant study recommended a $10 million adjustment to faculty salaries based on the difference between OSU faculty salaries and those of our peers. Funding will be added over and above an annual raise program to close this gap over the 10-year period so that by 2015, OSU faculty salaries are intended to be at the peer average. This phase began in FY2005 with an average raise of 5%, 2% above the rate of inflation. The rationale for this phase is that salaries have traditionally been less than competitive at OSU for many departments and disciplines. While there are many quality faculty members at OSU, it has become increasingly difficult to retain faculty who are recruited by other institutions.

The third phase, also beginning in FY2006, will increase the faculty size by adding 10 new positions for each of the next 10 years to grow the faculty by 100 positions. These positions will be linked to key goals identified in the OSU Strategic Plan. The rationale for this phase is that it has been determined that the current faculty size is, for the most part, producing as much as can be reasonably expected in terms of scholarly effort. If faculty scholarly effort is to increase, it must be realized through an increase in the size of the faculty.

Compression of faculty salaries within units is a current salary concern. The average salary for full professors is about 50% more than the average salary for assistant professors and about 30% more than the average salary for associate professors. However, in six units across campus, the mean salary at a lower rank is higher than the mean salary at a higher rank. Additionally, each department-rank combination mean salary was considered as a percentage of the mean salary of the peer group within other Big 12 universities. Salaries of full professors were 84% of the peer average with a range of 68% in Management to 108% in Nutritional Sciences. Salaries of assistant professors average 93% of the peer average with a range of 82% in Political Science to 115% in Hotel and Restaurant Administration. In more than two-thirds of OSU departments, the percentage of department-rank combination mean salary as compared to the mean salary of the peer group within the Big 12 universities is highest for assistant professors. That is twice the number that would be expected if no salary compression existed.^0.37

Assessment

There are many examples of progress since 1995 toward increased understanding of, support for, and participation in assessment to improve programs and provide accountability. For example, in May 2000, the General Education Assessment Task Force was formed by the Assessment Council^0.38 and the Office of University Assessment and Testing^0.39 (OUAT) to develop and implement a new plan to assess the effectiveness of OSU's general education program.^0.40 Although general education and “mid-level” assessment methods such as standardized tests and surveys had been conducted intermittently at OSU since 1993, no sustainable approach to evaluating the general education curriculum had been established. The task force represented the first group of OSU faculty members who were paid to work on this university-wide assessment project and marked a renewed commitment to general education assessment at OSU.

Following the assessment standard of articulating desired student outcomes first, the task force started in 2000 by revising OSU's Criteria and Goals for General Education Courses ^0.41 document and identifying “assessable” outcomes for the general education program. After studying general education assessment practices at other institutions, the task group developed guidelines for effective and sustainable general education assessment for OSU and agreed to initiate two assessment methods that were consistent with these guidelines: institutional portfolios and a course-content database. Institutional portfolios directly assess student achievement of the expected learning outcomes for the general education program. The course database contains information to evaluate how each general education course contributes to student achievement of those articulated outcomes. These methods were implemented in 2001.

In 2003, the Assessment Council and General Education Advisory Council approved the task force's name change to the General Education Assessment Committee. The committee is charged with continuing to develop and implement general education assessment, and it reports to the Assessment Council and General Education Advisory Council. Membership in these committees is intentionally overlapped. Committee members (faculty) serve rotating three-year terms, are extensively involved in undergraduate teaching at OSU, represent a range of disciplines, and are paid summer stipends for their work on general education assessment.

Outcomes Assessment Improved

The Assessment Council completed its third year of reviewing the assessment plans ^0.42 and reports^0.43 for academic units in spring 2003 and has now completed at least one review of all OSU academic programs. These reviews have resulted in greater communication and understanding of what outcomes assessment is about and what academic units should be doing. Almost three-quarters of all academic units have revised their assessment plans or otherwise demonstrated greater commitment to outcomes assessment in their programs as a result of feedback received from the Assessment Council reviews. In 2004, the schedule for Assessment Council review of Program Outcomes Assessment was modified to support its integration into the Academic Program Review process.

The Academic Program Review^0.44 is the method by which the OSRHE and institutions of higher education in Oklahoma evaluate existing programs, as mandated by the Oklahoma Legislature. Informed decisions related to program initiation, expansion, contraction, consolidation, and termination, as well as reallocation of resources, are among those decisions that may result from information developed through analysis and assessment.

Increase in University-Wide Assessment Activity

OSU participated in the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) in 2000, and again in 2002. In spring 2003, the Assessment Council and OUAT invested considerable effort in reviewing, communicating, and developing recommendations from OSU's 2002 NSSE results. An extensive website has been developed to describe OSU's NSSE findings and how OSU has acted on those results.^0.45 Several academic units have used a modified version of the NSSE for program outcomes assessment in years when OSU did not participate as an institution.

Since 2001, the OUAT has conducted an annual university-wide survey of OSU alumni, administering the survey to alumni of graduate and undergraduate programs in alternating years. The survey includes 17 questions that are asked of all alumni, and each academic program is invited to provide up to 15 program-specific questions to be asked of its alumni. Participation by academic programs in these annual surveys has increased since the project's inception. Results from these surveys have become a cornerstone of the assessment efforts for many academic units and provide valuable information about the career patterns of recent graduates and perceptions about program quality.

Increased Funding for Assessment

Increased funding has been provided to programs for Outcomes Assessment, General Education Assessment, and Assessment of Student Satisfaction. In FY2005, $290,000 was provided to academic units for Program Outcomes Assessment, an increase of $123,000 from FY2001 ($167,000). In FY2004, $70,500 was budgeted for General Education Assessment, about twice the amount ($35,000) spent in FY2001. Each student pays one dollar per credit hour that is earmarked for assessment.

Library Issues

The 1986 and 1995 NCA reports expressed concerns about library storage and patron space. The review teams suggested that some of the collection be moved to a remote storage facility to free up space. In 1995, the university administration was urged to address the pressing need for additional library space. It responded by acquiring a former supermarket building. The 50,000 square foot facility is located one mile from campus.

Funds were allocated to renovate approximately two-fifths of the building. Renovation of this building, known as the Library Annex, was completed on July 1, 2002, and transfer of materials began. Approximately 15,000 square feet of the annex houses lesser-used materials, back issues of journals, material now available online, items too fragile to repair, and certain items from Special Collections of the main and branch libraries. Items moved to the annex are noted in the OSU Library catalog. Library patrons needing materials from the annex can complete a web-based request form. Materials are retrieved and delivered on request, in most cases electronically.

The OSU museum, a closed collection for which the library has been caretaker since the early 1990s, occupies around 1,000 square feet in the renovated facility. The library's Electronic Publishing Center, established in 2002, occupies the remaining 500 square feet of renovated space.

Plans for the remaining three-fifths of the building include a Special Collections remote storage facility. This phase of the project is dependent on outside funding. Renovation of the remaining space is a goal of the library's five-year fundraising plan.

Much has been accomplished in regard to addressing library storage and patron space. In the next 9-18 months, storage space will become available in Murray Hall and the basement of the library. This additional space will be adequate for at least three years. Discussion is underway regarding library expansion and additional study spaces on campus. The construction of a remote storage facility is a possible long-term solution during the next four to five years, and long-range plans call for basic library renovations.

Library Improvements

Many improvements to the main library have been made in the past few years. These include the addition of a wireless network to serve a floating computer lab, physical renovation in many areas, a coffee bar, new security gates, and refurbished group and silent study rooms.

Additional goals for future building improvements include the Library Plaza leading to the south entrance, the Reading Room, the Special Collections Facility, and the creation of the Student Success Center on the first floor.

Library Acquisitions

Acquisition of books and serials is a continuing problem in an era of rampant inflation in publishers' prices. Large shortfalls in materials budgets in the past few years have limited the library's ability to keep pace with all library user needs. User views on the sufficiency of the collection vary, depending on the discipline and degree of connectivity between the staff and faculty user. Overall, the consensus seems to be that the library is sufficient for undergraduate purposes, but needs improvement as a resource for graduate programs.

As projected in the 1995 report, it was necessary to cancel subscriptions to approximately 395 journals. But, by 2004, subscription access was reinstated to approximately 75% of these titles. A number of the remaining 25% have ceased publication, or have merged with other resources.

As of November 1, 2004, the library provides subscription access to 37,392 online journals, magazines, and newspapers. Although a single title may be available from more than one source, 23,709 of the total online titles are unique. OSU has benefited from participation in numerous consortia, enabling access to thousands of research journals at favorable costs per individual title. Access to electronic resources was expanded in fall 2003 when students began paying a fee that provides $1.5 million for electronic resources each year.

Monograph purchases continue to be of concern, although for fiscal years 2004 and 2005, the library has budgeted $1 million annually for monographs. The library now has 13 endowed collection funds, which have been established through private donations. These endowments generate approximately $125,000 annually. These funds are used for special purchases and to enrich specific areas of the collection.

The library's rank in the Association of Research Libraries (ARL) index is expected to improve to 70 out of 113 libraries for 2003-2004, a significant change from the 1995 rank of 90.

Retirement Program

In 1995, OSU faculty and administrative/professional staff were required to participate in the Oklahoma Teachers' Retirement System (OTRS). OTRS required a member contribution that was scheduled to increase to 7.0% of pay and benefits, with OSU required to make an employer contribution that gradually increased to 7.05%. The transition to the above schedule for higher education, and especially the comprehensive universities within Oklahoma, was a difficult one. OTRS, a defined benefit system designed for common schools in Oklahoma, lacks the familiarity and portability desired among higher education faculty and staff. Recruitment of faculty was especially difficult with this primary component of OSU's retirement package.

OSU provided faculty and staff who had one year of service and had reached age 26 retirement contributions equal to 7% of the first $11,520 of pay each year and 11% of pay over $11,520. These OSU contributions were used to pay the mandated employee contribution to OTRS with the rest invested in an individual defined contribution account with TIAA-CREF. Faculty and staff were fully vested in the defined contribution account. In 2003, OSU contributions were increased to 11.0% of pay; and in 2004, contributions were increased to 11.5%.

After a decade of legislative attempts to remove the mandate for faculty and administrative/professional staff to participate in the Oklahoma Teachers' Retirement System, OSU was successful in 2004 with the passage of HB2226. Any employee hired July 1, 2004, or thereafter, is able to choose to participate in OTRS (with OSU paying the current employee and employer contribution fees) or to participate in an Alternate Retirement Program (ARP) and receive 11.5% of pay in an individual defined contribution account. Funds in the ARP will be 100% vested after two years of continuous regular service with OSU. HB2226 also includes a provision by which existing members of OTRS may withdraw from OTRS and join the ARP. This provision is currently awaiting IRS approval. Once granted, individuals will have a full year in which to make a decision.

In addition, HB2226 increased retirement benefits for employees who joined OTRS prior to July 1, 1995, so that the retirement benefits for the two comprehensive universities became very similar to those of the rest of OTRS. Other changes to OTRS in the past 10 years have included a change in vesting from 10 to 5 years, increased interest on withdrawals, and extension of certain credits to members who joined after 1992.

The Flexible Compensation Benefits Committee, which developed many of the changes affecting OSU retirement, also recommended that OSU continue to increase contributions for the ARP. Once the university contribution reaches 12.0%, a total of an additional 2% would be added and would be matched by employees. OSU also has added 457(b) tax-deferred investment opportunities to the 403(b) plans, which have been available for some time. TIAA-CREF has continued to expand investment opportunities that OSU has made available to employees.

The changes in the past years have been exceedingly well received by employees. In addition, the university has agreed to expand investment opportunities for retirement contributions and allow loans and hardship withdrawals for employees, as well as in-service withdrawals for employees who meet OSU's retirement criteria. Such changes will continue to enhance OSU's retirement program to retain existing employees and attract top-notch faculty and staff.

Diversity

The representation of women in middle and upper administration at OSU has increased significantly in the last decade, from 25.6% to 34%. Furthermore, the institution gained its first female chief academic officer when Marlene I. Strathe was named provost and senior vice president in July 2003. The gain in percentage of associate and full professors who are women is not as great as the gain in administration, but the number has increased from 15.2% to 19.7% and when assistant professors are included, women comprise 25.1% of faculty. Minority faculty representation in the ranks of associate and full professors has also increased, from 8.1% to 9.7% and when associate professors are included, the percentage is slightly higher at 9.74%. However, the percentage of minority personnel in middle and upper administration at OSU has declined in the last decade, from 12.1% to 9.5%. The institution is addressing this challenge.

In addition to the OSU Affirmative Action Plan and Policies,^0.46 concrete evidence of OSU's commitment to the improvement of its diversity response is demonstrated in several ways. For example, a vice president of institutional diversity has recently joined the OSU central administration. Campus-wide diversity issues will be focused on and action plans implemented through this office. Respect for diversity has the opportunity to evolve into a reality of diversity for the university community under the leadership of this new vice president.

The Faculty Council Diversity Committee deals with many aspects of diversity. One of the goals of this committee is to address diversity in the curriculum and recommend changes that might be needed. The Office of Student Affairs provides 40-50 cultural and diversity programs per year for the broad university community. Other groups across campus have promoted diversity; for example, the Women's Faculty Council has been the impetus in re-invigorating the Women's Studies program. Information about diversity in such areas as policies, recruitment, and hiring is available on the affirmative action website.^0.47

As needed, faculty search committees contact the Office of Affirmative Action regarding hiring procedures and affirmative action. The department head also is sent a letter from the Office of Affirmative Action further reminding him or her of procedures, providing statistics of availability for minorities and women, and encouraging the administrator to advertise in places that can ensure a diverse applicant pool. The department head and the search committee also are informed about the affirmative action website, which provides recruiting information.

Diversity Recruitment

OSU has outlined strategies for recruiting minority faculty and staff members, but there is room for improvement in this area. Because the hiring process is decentralized, success or failure is assessed by the numbers of minorities and women who are hired. The Office of Affirmative Action assists departments in advertising in publications that reach minority populations. The affirmative action website also provides useful information for hiring committees.

---

The Self-Study Process

An institutional self-study was undertaken at OSU in preparation for the accreditation site visit from the Higher Learning Commission (HLC) of the North Central Association on September 26-28, 2005. Faculty, administrators, staff, and students studied the university in an effort to assess whether current policies, plans, and practices ensure fulfillment of the mission and the established accreditation criteria.

A director for the process was identified in late 2002. Early in 2003, representatives from major university areas, such as assessment, academic affairs, student affairs, institutional research, and enrollment management identified facuty leaders to chair the criterion groups. The HLC was developing new accreditation criteria, and it was essential to identify some primary steering committee members to study the new criteria and attend the HLC meeting in March 2003 to learn about the new criteria statements, core components, and patterns of evidence.

The Accreditation Steering Committee^0.48 is a set of interactive teams^0.49 engaged in the numerous tasks of the self-study process and report production. The core team of the steering committee consists of two groups: the representatives who provide support from major units and the faculty leaders who serve as criterion chairs. By early in the fall semester of 2003, the core team was in place, and membership in the various criterion teams was under consideration. The criterion teams, consisting mainly of faculty, were directed to study the criteria and identify examples of evidence to indicate that OSU satisfies the core components for each criterion. Care was taken to involve membership from many units over various colleges. A group was formed for each criterion, and two groups were formed for the broad criterion four. These criterion teams have interacted with the core team through the chairs of the respective criterion groups.

The main work of the criterion groups occurred within the academic year 2003-2004.^0.50 They surveyed, interviewed, and gathered data to develop the evidence to indicate that the new criteria were fulfilled. The processes that the various groups utilized to develop the materials differed depending on the size of the group and the magnitude of the task. Criterion teams one and two were reasonably small groups with only five to six members, and their activities were parallel to the activities of the strategic planning process initiated through the Office of the President. Those two groups tended to work as units on their evidence gathering. The other criterion groups had more members and after initial discussions, tended to work in subgroups of two or three on specific core components.

Over the summer of 2004, writings, called Source Writings, developed from the groups and filtered through the chairs, were provided to the director. The source writings were circulated to other members of the steering committee and the self-study writer and were made available to the campus community through the accreditation website.^0.51

During the second year of the self-study, the activities shifted to the writing of the self-study report itself. Three additional teams fulfilled specific needs during the writing process. A writing team with an appointed writer, web specialist, and design expert also included campus leaders from faculty, administration, and staff. A group of administrators, the Readers' Group, was organized specifically to incorporate administrative assistance throughout the development of the self-study report. Students were included on each criterion team to review the group's writing and participate in the preparation of the report and self-study events; these students were the initial members of the student team.

The task of writing the self-study report was organized into three preliminary drafts with a final draft to be presented to the HLC. At the beginning of the writing process, the Source Writings, the materials produced by the criterion teams, were disseminated to all teams of the steering committee and were placed on the website. Once the writer produced a first draft, questions, needs, and requests associated with that draft were circulated back to the core and writing teams. With input from those two teams, individuals were identified to respond to further information requests. The responses were returned to the director who then cycled that information back to the writer, the teams, and the website.

For each successive draft of the self-study report, the content and the presentation were discussed and adjusted through the process of multiple teams reviewing the material. The director served as a conduit for both communication and documents to facilitate effective interactions between and within the teams.

During the spring of 2005, the draft versions of the self-study report were available on the accreditation website. On- and off-campus constituents had the opportunity to read and respond to the report. Public events during this time, including lunches, receptions, and presentations, were used to generate discussion about the self-study, resulting report, and upcoming site visit. Listserv messages to faculty and staff informed the general university community about the accreditation process.

The last team added to the steering committee was the hospitality team. This group will provide hosts for the site visit and also provide a platform for student activities in the months leading up to the site visit.

---

Criterion One: Mission and Integrity

The organization operates with integrity to ensure the fulfillment of its mission through structures and processes that involve the board, administration, faculty, staff, and students.

As a land-grant university, OSU has a clear and distinct mission to pursue teaching, research, and extension outreach. Many university programs already carry out these priorities, and OSU's vision for the future allows the university to build on its legacy of educational quality and service, while addressing emerging challenges and opportunities. OSU's defined values are embodied in its organizational structures and policies and in the everyday work of students, faculty, staff, and administration. With input from all its constituents, OSU has established clear goals and core values, as well as highly effective evaluation systems to help ensure that the university's missions are carried out with integrity and accountability.

Core Component 1a

The organization's mission documents are clear and articulate publicly the organization's commitments.

The OSU Strategic Plan ensures that the system's mission statement and those of the various OSU entities are clear and articulate publicly OSU's commitments. OSU's system-wide strategic plan was developed to help the system reach higher levels of achievement and recognition in the fulfillment of its mission.

A System-wide Strategic Plan for OSU

Dr. David J. Schmidly^1.1 became CEO of the OSU System and 17th president of Oklahoma State University on November 25, 2002, after serving as president of Texas Tech University. His title, “President of Oklahoma State University and CEO of the OSU System,” reflects the growth and complexity of what has become a genuine university system composed of more than the Stillwater campus.

Soon after becoming OSU's leader, President Schmidly began an unprecedented strategic planning initiative^1.2 designed to elevate OSU to a position of prominence among the nation's top 75 research and academic universities.^1.3 An initiative such as this had never been attempted at any university in Oklahoma.

The result has been 278 integrated strategic plans representing all of the campuses, areas, and units within the OSU System.^1.4 Each plan focuses on strategic themes, such as academic instruction, research, outreach, educational partnerships, image enhancement, quality of life, diversity, and service to Oklahomans.

To achieve national prominence, the plan states that the OSU System must focus all its resources on strategic goals that have broad support. For this reason, the strategic plan was developed by the entire OSU System community, including faculty, staff, administrators, students, regents, alumni, friends, and the citizens of Oklahoma. The process was overseen by a steering committee that included representatives from the administration, faculty, and staff of each campus. The planning effort was also assisted by a consultant.

The planning process focused considerable attention on both OSU's internal and external constituencies. A series of town hall meetings led by Dr. Schmidly facilitated this process. The “top down and bottom up” process of gaining input also utilized task forces, retreats, and presentations to many constituents.

Each unit's plan defined the particular entity's mission, vision, core values, goals, critical success factors, objectives, and strategies within certain boundaries and definitions. As the individual plans were assessed, it became apparent that many of the units shared similar goals, objectives, and values. From this assessment, a set of common goals and values was adopted for the system and each campus.

The planning process resulted in the identification of six core values shared by the entire system: excellence, intellectual freedom, integrity, service, diversity, and resource stewardship.

In addition, five strategic themes for the system were developed from the plan. These themes are academic instruction, research, outreach through instruction, and partnerships; image communication; quality of life in the domains of healthy living, culture, and economic development; diversity; and human development of students, faculty, staff, and all Oklahomans.

Nine strategic priorities emerged from the planning process. These system-wide priorities are academic excellence in teaching, research, and outreach; quality of life/economic development; healthy living; synergy in the use of resources; partnerships/collaborations; image; student development; diversity; and human resources.

The final strategic plan strongly reflects OSU's land-grant tradition, priorities, and strengths in teaching, research, and outreach, and it outlines plans for building on that legacy. It also outlines the avenues through which the OSU System will continue to fulfill its mission while maintaining the highest levels of integrity.

The final plan was accepted by the OSU/A&M Board of Regents in September 2004.^1.5 Shortly thereafter, the University Planning Council^1.6 was formed to regularly review the planning documents and to evaluate progress and make necessary updates. All OSU strategic planning documents are available on the OSU website, www.okstate.edu.^1.7

Mission Documents

New mission and vision statements were adopted for the OSU System and each entity of the system as part of the university's strategic plan. These statements are widely disseminated to various constituencies through the internet and publication in the University Catalog and through other OSU recruiting and marketing materials.

OSU System Mission Statement

Oklahoma State University is a multi-campus, land-grant educational system that improves the lives of people in Oklahoma, the nation, and the world through integrated, high-quality teaching, research, and outreach. The instructional mission includes undergraduate, graduate, technical, extension, and continuing education informed by scholarship and research. The research, scholarship, and creative activities promote human and economic development through the expansion of knowledge and its application.

OSU System Vision Statement

The Oklahoma State University System will advance the quality of life in Oklahoma by fulfilling the instructional, research, and outreach obligations of a first-class, land-grant educational system.

OSU-Stillwater Mission Statement

Proud of its land-grant heritage, Oklahoma State University-Stillwater advances knowledge, enriches lives, and stimulates economic development through instruction, research, outreach, and creative activities.

OSU-Stillwater Vision Statement

Oklahoma State University-Stillwater will become one of the premier public universities in the United States and lead in the creation of a new Oklahoma.

To accomplish this:

• OSU will educate students to be lifelong learners, intellectually and ethically prepared to serve and lead in an increasingly complex global society;
• OSU scholars and researchers will produce works of enduring impact that will improve the quality of life and stimulate economic development;
• OSU will be student-centered, scholarly-driven, community-focused, and performance-based;
• OSU's culture will support diversity, academic freedom, high aspirations, and mutual respect; and
• OSU will provide the finest outreach in the state and selected regional, national, and international communities.

OSU-Tulsa Mission Statement

In a metropolitan setting, Oklahoma State University-Tulsa advances knowledge, enriches lives, and enhances economic development through innovative instruction, research and creative activities, and outreach.

OSU-Tulsa Vision Statement

Oklahoma State University-Tulsa will be prized as the crown jewel of the city of Tulsa. By 2020, the 250-acre, 25-building campus will have 20,000 students enrolled in 100 undergraduate and graduate degree programs and:

• Be recognized for outstanding teaching, research, and scholarship in select areas;
• Distinguish itself as a center of research and discovery where academic freedom and a work-friendly environment inspire outstanding accomplishments;
• Be a model for strong partnerships between higher education, industry, and government organizations that stimulate social and economic development through intellectual discoveries and entrepreneurial activities;
• Play a vital role in the development of the neighborhoods surrounding the campus and actively participate in activities that benefit the community as a whole; and
• Reach beyond campus boundaries and use cutting-edge technology to deliver courses, degree programs, and learning resources directly to students.

Core Component 1b

In its mission documents, the organization recognizes the diversity of its learners, other constituents, and the greater society it serves.

Because OSU recognizes the diversity of its learners, other constituencies, and the greater society it serves, diversity is a core value in the OSU System's strategic plan. The institution strives to create an environment of respect for all individuals by valuing other ethnic and cultural backgrounds, diversity of opinion, and freedom of expression.

Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Policy

OSU's policy explicitly states that it strives to be a complete equal opportunity university in all phases of operations, toward the end of fulfilling the university's basic mission and attaining its goals.^1.8 Other aims of the policy are to:

• Provide equal employment and/or educational opportunity on the basis of merit and without discrimination because of age, race, ethnicity, color, sex, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, veteran status, or qualified disability.
• Acknowledge fully the dignity of all persons and their labors. In support of this principle, sexual harassment is condemned in the recruitment, appointment, and advancement of employees and in the evaluation of academic performance.
• Apply equal opportunity in the recruitment, hiring, placement, training, promotion, and termination of all employees and to all personnel actions such as compensation, education, tuition assistance, and social and recreational programs. The university shall consistently and aggressively monitor these areas to ensure that any differences that may exist are the results of bona fide qualification factors and not the results of age, race, ethnicity, color, sex, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, veteran status, or qualified disability.
• Ensure that each applicant who is offered employment at the university is selected on the basis of qualification, merit, and professional ability.
• Provide and promote equal educational opportunity to students in all phases of academic and student life and consistently and aggressively monitor these areas to ensure that any differences that may exist are the results of bona fide qualification factors and not the results of age, race, ethnicity, color, sex, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, veteran status, or qualified disability.

Non-discrimination Procedures

The university has an affirmative action program to implement its official policies of equal opportunity employment. Statements are published regularly as to the official position of the university in regard to discrimination and equal opportunity employment. OSU's continuing policy is to actively and aggressively locate, recruit, place, upgrade, and promote members of ethnic minority groups and women at all levels at the university.

The responsibility for the recruitment of faculty is delegated to the provost and senior vice president in conjunction with the deans of the colleges. Responsibility for the recruitment of administrative and professional staff is delegated to the appropriate vice president in conjunction with the deans and directors within the colleges or other subdivisions of the university. Classified staff members are recruited by the Office of Human Resources (OHR) in conjunction with the college deans and directors and other university budgetary subdivisions. OHR is responsible for referring the names of qualified candidates to their potential supervisors. OHR also is responsible for disseminating job information through a variety of outlets.

A recruitment report form that accompanies payroll action forms for university personnel is used to implement the university's plan for affirmative action in regard to equal opportunity employment. This form indicates the number of persons considered for employment, their race and sex, and the reasons why the person selected was offered employment. These reports, tabulated on a regular basis, are reviewed by the Affirmative Action Office and the appropriate administrators. On the OSU-Stillwater campus, colleges and vice presidential units are responsible for working with the director of affirmative action to fulfill the equal opportunity responsibilities in their areas.

Each OSU employee, by performing his or her assigned duties, contributes to the instructional, research, and administrative activity of the university. Thus, the university subscribes to sustaining the dignity of the employee and endeavors to provide working conditions based on fair and equitable standards. OSU began Title IX comprehensive sexual harassment training in spring 2005; the sessions planned for administrators, faculty, staff, and students will continue several semesters. Any employee or group of employees has the right, without retaliation, to discuss with his or her supervisor(s), the assistant vice president of human resources, and/or the director of affirmative action the terms of his or her employment or working conditions. The affirmative action director is responsible for all matters relative to the university's equal employment opportunity/affirmative action program. The assistant vice president of human resources is responsible for application, conformity, and coordination of the personnel policies and procedures and for developing recommendations in conjunction with the affirmative action director, when applicable. Department supervisors are responsible for the administration and equal employment opportunity/affirmative action compliance of all personnel functions in conjunction with the affirmative action plan, as they pertain to employees under their jurisdiction.

Responding to Diverse Needs

Evidence of OSU's commitment to diversity is demonstrated by the practices of various OSU entities, such as the Office of Student Affairs,^1.9 the Multicultural Student Center,^1.10 the Office of Human Resources,^1.11 the Affirmative Action Office,^1.12 Student Disabilities Services,^1.13 Undergraduate Admissions,^1.14 International Students and Scholars,^1.15 and the School of International Studies.^1.16 In addition to designated policies and procedures, OSU's institutional view on diversity is expressed in many ways, including the development of classes about multiculturalism, the creation of study plans for enhancing diversity, and publication of clear statements about OSU's diversity goals in its catalog, faculty handbook, student informational publications, and many other materials. In addition, OSU recently completed a nationwide search for a vice president for institutional diversity that resulted in the appointment of Dr. Cornell Thomas to the position.

In addition, all OSU undergraduates are required to complete a general education course with an international dimension. Students in these courses critically analyze one or more contemporary cultures external to the United States to help students understand how international cultures relate to complex, modern world systems.

A number of special grant-supported programs for OSU students are aimed at increasing representation in fields in which minorities are underrepresented. Two of these are the Native Americans into Biological Sciences program in the Department of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics and the American Indians into Psychology program in the Psychology Department.

Recently, workshops have helped prepare minority students to compete for the Gates Millennium Scholarships. In addition, there is a strong presence of minority professionals on the OSU staff in the admissions and financial aid offices. The renovation of the university's Colvin Center also has allowed for the creation of new international sports clubs and activities. Campus Life ^1.17 provides more than 50 diversity programs, and Residential Life^1.18 has specific floors for members of ethnic groups who want to live in proximity and celebrate their heritages. Also a number of multicultural scholarships are available, as well as ethnic student organizations. The Sexual Orientation Diversity Association (SODA), located in the Student Affairs Division, has weekly meetings and educational programs, as well as panel discussions on bisexuality and gay marriage.

Core Component 1c

Understanding of and support of the mission pervade the organization.

OSU's strategic planning process involved every unit of the university and gave all employees an opportunity to better understand the university's mission and to have input into planning aimed at supporting the OSU mission. Many OSU students also were involved with the planning process, thereby gaining a better understanding of the university's mission and supporting its implementation. The mission lends stability to the campus by promoting a consistency of perception and action.

Fulfilling OSU's Mission

The strategic planning process provides a means for applying the university's various missions as the University Planning Council^1.19 works to align mission and goals with changing needs and resources. Five-Year Academic Report Cards, called Academic Ledgers,^1.20 summarize the major variables associated with enrollment, student profile, faculty, teaching, research, and financial information. The University Planning Council will review the Academic Ledgers for information to assist it in making planning decisions. This process, grounded in organized data presentation, promotes effective use of the university's resources to ensure fulfillment of the mission.

Each college has associate deans or directors for instruction, research, and outreach. To aid in the planning process, administrators in instruction and outreach serve on the Instruction Council and the Outreach Council. These councils make recommendations to the provost and senior vice president. The associate deans for instruction from each college serve on the Instruction Council,^1.21 which is chaired by the associate vice president of undergraduate education. This group meets at least monthly to discuss all aspects of the instructional program including, but not limited to, curriculum quality and content, methods of course delivery, and enhancement of instruction. The council makes recommendations to the provost on policies, procedures, and regulations affecting the instructional program at OSU.

The colleges' outreach directors serve on the Outreach Council,^1.22 which is chaired by the director of international education and outreach. The council meets monthly to facilitate communication, discuss mutual concerns, develop interdisciplinary programs, and recommend administrative policy and procedures.

Mission Infusion Across Campus

Because the OSU strategic planning process involved all units of every OSU campus, interaction between these units and central administration during the plan's development communicated broadly the university's mission. In addition, numerous meetings were held on the OSU campuses to explain all aspects of the strategic plan and its mission and vision. These materials also have been widely distributed through publications and placement on the OSU website. Every unit's plan is designed to reflect the university's overall mission, and employees of each unit are evaluated in light of the goals and objectives set for their units. Through the strategic plan, all employees will be working to implement the university's overall mission.

Mission-based Budgets

As the University Planning Council continues to monitor the success of the plan in meeting the university's mission objectives and identifying changing needs, the university's budgets will address these needs. A current example of a mission-based budget consideration is the university's “Restore, Reward, and Grow” initiative. Budget constraints have prevented OSU from competing nationally in paying salaries that would attract and retain top faculty. This initiative addresses this issue, which is vital to OSU's achievement of its mission.

The current administration contracted an outside consultant to compare each academic college with a selected peer group. Based on the results of this study,^1.23 the administration has outlined the funds needed to fill faculty positions that were left vacant throughout years when OSU experienced cutbacks in appropriations, as well as to reward the current faculty, and to increase future faculty numbers.

The “Restore, Reward, and Grow” initiative began in FY2005 and will continue through FY2015. The program has come about as a result of the completion of the OSU Strategic Plan and is necessary in order to accomplish the goals set by the plan. The intent of the program is to strengthen the faculty in terms of both quality and quantity. The program has three simultaneous phases.

The first phase will restore the 100 faculty positions left vacant as a result of state appropriation reductions in recent years. This phase was initiated in FY2005 when the provost and senior vice president authorized 25 vacant faculty positions for recruitement. It will continue through the next 3 years at a rate of 25 faculty positions per year for a total of 100 positions.

The second phase will increase the average faculty salary at OSU over a 10-year period to the level of the peer average. The recent consultant study recommended a $10 million adjustment to faculty salaries based on the difference between OSU faculty salaries and those of its peers. Funding will be added over and above an annual raise program to close this gap over the stated 10-year period. It is intended that by 2015, OSU faculty salaries will be at the peer average. This phase began in FY2005 with an average 5% raise, 2% above the inflation index.

The third phase, beginning in FY2006, will increase the faculty size by adding 10 new positions for each of the next 10 years to grow the faculty by 100 positions. These positions will be linked to key goals identified by the OSU Strategic Plan.

As previously stated, the university has implemented faculty raise programs ranging from three to six percent annually when possible, including special equity pools for faculty. While reductions in state appropriations in FY2003 and FY2004 made faculty raises impossible, in FY2004, the administration used a pool of $400,000 to give special awards to bring all tenured and tenure-track faculty salaries up to a minimum of $40,000 and to reward outstanding faculty. Additionally, a one-time supplement of $500 was given to all continuously employed faculty and staff in FY2004.

Instances of salary inversion resulting from faculty salary compression are present on the campus. Hiring new faculty members at higher salaries than experienced faculty of a higher rank in the same department leads to low faculty morale and high turnover. The administration and OSU/A&M Board of Regents have committed to address the situation by bringing compensation up to the level of the Big 12 average and ongoing efforts are being made to achieve this goal.

Core Component 1d

The organization's governance and administrative structures promote effective leadership and support collaborative processes that enable the organization to fulfill its mission.

The OSU/A&M Board of Regents' stated mission is to provide service that is characterized by the highest degree of cooperation and communication among system institutions; quality programs that meet or exceed the expectations of people seeking service of any kind at any tier of the system; efficiency of operations in order to focus resources in a manner that will best support the educational needs of the people served; and accountability to the people of Oklahoma through an appropriate array of high-quality educational opportunities in accordance with the constitution and laws of the State of Oklahoma.

Selecting Outstanding Leaders

Members of the OSU administration are hired through processes that involve a national search, and input from faculty members is required when upper-level administrative positions are being filled. As a result, appropriate qualifications and a national reputation are part of the process for hiring administrators. Similar processes are followed in hiring faculty members. As stated in other areas of this report, OSU is making significant progress in its ability to offer competitive salaries that attract top administrators and faculty. The university also has increased the number of endowed chairs and professorships, which helps attract and retain top-notch faculty members.

Collaborative Governance

OSU has active faculty^1.24 and staff^1.25 councils. Both organizations have been in place for many years, and shared governance is a reality at OSU. Representatives from these councils and from the undergraduate^1.26 and graduate^1.27 student councils meet monthly with the Stillwater Cabinet.^1.28 Recommendations to the administration are negotiated through extensive interaction between the councils and appropriate administrative units. Recommendations frequently receive prompt responses from the administration. The input and active collaboration at all levels of the university help promote effective leadership.

Academic Structures

All academic programs are administered through the Office of Academic Affairs.^1.29 Curricula are the responsibility of the faculty under the direction of departments and colleges. Several units in the Office of Academic Affairs assist with curriculum planning, assessment, and delivery. Research programs are administered through the Research Office, the Office of the Vice President for Research and Technology Transfer,^1.30 and the associate deans and directors for research from the various colleges. The Office of University Research Services^1.31 assists in these endeavors. These collaborative processes help OSU successfully fulfill its mission.

New Technology

New computer-based technological structures promote effectiveness in most processes at the university. Not only is efficiency enhanced, but transparency of processes and results also is dramatically increased. The use of the internet, e-mail, and electronically delivered classes as well as other technology has completely realigned the ways in which administrators, faculty, staff, students, and the public interact and communicate with the institution and with each other. These structural changes have significantly affected the process of teaching, the administration of teaching and management of classes, and the daily work of the institution.

Core Component 1e

The organization upholds and protects its integrity.

OSU has shown its commitment to integrity by including it as a core value in the OSU Strategic Plan (Integrity — We are committed to the principles of truth and honesty, and we will be equitable, ethical, and professional). This core value is evident in many policies and procedures that help ensure that all of the university's missions and practices meet the highest standards of integrity.

Lawful Practice

As a public university, OSU is committed to upholding the public's trust and to obeying all laws: federal, state, and local. Many of OSU's activities are subject to regular public scrutiny through the very public nature of the university's work and through the numerous policies, regulations, and laws that apply directly to the activities of the university. Compliance units are numerous. These include environmental health and safety compliance, research compliance, privacy compliance at the Center for Health Sciences, compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, and NCAA compliance. The Seretean Wellness Center and the University Health Services both have HEPA and FERPA compliance. In addition, budgeting and other financial affairs are handled with open discussion.

The members of the OSU/A&M Board of Regents also are required, by state law, to participate in training, including training in ethics, as applied to institutions of higher education. The regents also must follow specific state laws in matters such as the hiring of consultants, architects, and contractors, and other business-related practices.

The OSU/A&M Regents' Department of Internal Audits,^1.32 headquartered on the OSU-Stillwater campus, regularly audits the institutions under the board's governance. These audit reports are presented to the leaders of the institutions. Institutional administrators provide written responses to all internal audit reports. This auditing process and other input by OSU's governing board help promote integrity and effective administration of the university.

Academic Integrity

Academic dishonesty by either students or faculty members is not tolerated at OSU. Specific policies to deal with allegations of academic dishonesty outline the steps to determine if academic dishonesty has occurred and to allow the accused student or faculty member to state his or her case for consideration by committees made up of faculty members and students. Those found to have committed academic dishonesty face severe consequences. In 2002-2003, faculty members reported that 93 students received penalties for academic dishonesty. OSU's faculty members endorse the American Association of University Professors' 1987 “Statement on Professional Ethics.” OSU also is affiliated with The Center for Academic Integrity (CAI), a consortium of over 320 institutions. CAI's mission is to provide a forum to identify and affirm the values of academic integrity and to promote their achievement in practice. The mission is achieved primarily through the involvement of students, faculty, and administrators from the member institutions who share with peers and colleagues the center's collective experience, expertise, and creative energy.

OSU became a member of the CAI in the fall of 2003. In January 2004, a committee of faculty, staff, and administrators began discussions to revise the 1984 policy on allegations of academic misconduct and dishonesty and to promote academic integrity on campus. In spring 2004, the committee administered an on-line survey with Dr. Don McCabe from Rutgers University. The survey assessed OSU students,' teaching assistants,' and faculty members' perceptions of the academic environment, the extent of academic misconduct, and attitudes related to academic integrity. Dr. McCabe presented results to the campus community in the fall of 2004.

The committee is developing a new policy and simplified procedures for addressing academic dishonesty, a communication plan to inform students and faculty of the revisions, and an academic integrity seminar for students who violate academic integrity.

Academic Advising

OSU's academic advisors operate under the standards of the National Academic Advising Association^1.33 (NACADA), the national professional organization for advisors. In regard to OSU's academic advisors, students probably offer the most effective local check-and-balance oversight. If an advisor does not do his or her job well, does not follow rules and regulations or policies and procedures, enrolls a student in an inappropriate course, or does not inform a student of important information and deadlines, the student generally reports the error(s) to the college director of student academic services or goes directly to other administrators. A council of student academic services directors, led by the assistant vice president for enrollment management, also meets monthly to discuss issues dealing with advisors and advising. Information from these meetings is shared with college and departmental advisors.

Grievances

OSU has clearly stated policies and procedures that ensure that all the university's employees are treated fairly and with integrity.^1.34 All areas of faculty members' employment are outlined in detail in the Faculty Handbook.^1.35 Policies concerning students, including grievances and a code of conduct, are covered in the Student Rights and Responsibilities Handbook.^1.36

OSU policy regarding all full-time and part-time members of the administrative/professional (A/P) and classified staff is also outlined. Any A/P or classified staff member who has a bona fide grievance (as defined by policy) that cannot be resolved informally may request the formation of a grievance committee, which will examine the issues and make recommendations to the appropriate administrator.

The policy recognizes three types of complaints defined as follows:

• Complaint: A complaint is a timely informal expression of dissatisfaction with particular aspects of employment outside the control of the staff member.
• Grievance: A grievance is a timely and written complaint filed by an employee, with regard to good faith assertion of substantial administrative error relating to appointment, reappointment, disciplinary actions, dismissal, retirement, or safety in working conditions. Excluded from the grievance definition are complaints concerning wages and salary judgments, performance-related dismissal during a formal probationary period of employment, and university statements concerning policies and rules.
• Discrimination: A complainant must state whether he or she believes that discrimination due to race, color, national origin, sex, age, religion, sexual orientation, qualified disability, or veteran's status is involved.

The Grievance Committee submits its preliminary report to the assistant vice president (AVP) of human resources in a non-discrimination case, or to both the human resources AVP and the director of affirmative action in a discrimination case. The AVP and director review the preliminary report for policy compliance. When the report is in compliance, it is forwarded to the appropriate vice president or to the appropriate senior administrator reporting directly to the president. The human resources AVP provides copies of the report to the grievant, the responding party, their counsel, if any, and to all members of the grievance committee. The human resources AVP keeps a copy in a permanent file.

The resulting action of the appropriate vice president or other senior administrator is reviewed by the university president. The full report from the Grievance Committee is made available for the president's review. The decision of the vice president or other senior administrator is considered final and binding after the review and with the concurrence of the president.

Conflicts of Interest

Members of the OSU faculty have as their primary professional responsibility their obligations to the university. OSU policy,^1.37 however, states that it is important that employees be allowed to forge external relationships. The policy further states that while members of the OSU faculty are not prohibited from developing external relationships with industry and private entrepreneurial ventures, such relationships carry an increased risk of a conflict of interest and commitment between obligations to the university and private concerns. Faculty members are urged to be sensitive to the possibility that outside obligations, financial interests, or employment may affect their responsibilities and decisions as members of the university community.

OSU's policies were developed to ensure that the university complies with current federal regulations and to provide guidance for faculty members regarding external relationships. The policy is also intended to assure the faculty, the university, and the public that potential conflicts of interest have been examined and will be managed in a manner consistent with university and public values.

OSU policy states that a conflict of interest arises when an investigator compromises his or her professional standards in carrying out teaching, research, extension, or service activities as a result of an external relationship that affects the financial interests of the investigator, a family member, or an associated entity. Further, conflict may violate or compromise ethical standards and guidelines associated with professional actions, activities, or treatment, as in the case of the medical profession. Policies outline how much financial interest a faculty member may have with an entity that may be directly affected by the results of the investigator's current or proposed externally funded research or when results of the research could be influenced by the financial relationship with the entity. The investigator must disclose any potential conflicts of interest.

Scientific Misconduct

Scientific misconduct is defined by OSU as fabrication, falsification, plagiarism, or other practices that seriously deviate from those that are commonly accepted within the scientific community for proposing, conducting, or reporting research. It does not include honest differences in interpretations or judgments of data.

Complaints of scientific misconduct directed at members of the university (faculty, students, or staff) may be made directly to the vice president for research and technology transfer (VPR) or referred to the VPR by the appropriate unit administrator. When an allegation of scientific misconduct is made, the VPR appoints a review committee to determine whether the allegation or apparent instance of scientific misconduct warrants a formal investigation. The VPR also consults with the OSU/A&M Board of Regents' Office of Legal Counsel prior to making a preliminary determination regarding such allegations. If it is determined that a formal investigation is warranted, the VPR must appoint an investigating committee.

Both the review and investigation committees are made up of three senior faculty members appointed by the VPR. These faculty members must hold academic rank at least equal to that of the person accused of scientific misconduct. Committee members must not have personal bias or a conflict of interest with the accused person, with the person making the allegations, or with any person who is called upon to give evidence in the initial inquiry. The accused, or respondent, has the right to protest the membership of an investigating committee.

The VPR fully considers all information received from all persons involved in the investigation and makes a final determination regarding the application of sanctions. Prior to making a final determination, the VPR also seeks appropriate faculty counsel from the respondent's department. The respondent has a right to appeal the imposition of sanctions.

When appropriate, the VPR must submit a final report of the investigation to the director of the Office of Scientific Integrity and any affected external funding agencies. In the event that scientific misconduct is determined to have occurred, the VPR may impose sanctions including, but not limited to, removal from a particular project, special monitoring of future work, written reprimand, probation for a specified period of time with conditions attached, suspension of rights and responsibilities for a specified period of time with conditions attached, or termination of employment.

Internal Audits

The OSU/A&M Board of Regent's Department of Internal Audits^1.38 helps ensure integrity of operations in areas such as admissions, registrar, bursar, student aid, human and animal research, copyright issues, campus health and environmental safety, police activities, and facility building, maintenance, and renovation.

The Institute of Internal Auditors states: “Internal auditing is an independent, objective assurance and consulting activity designed to add value and improve an organization's operations. It helps an organization accomplish its objectives by bringing a systematic, disciplined approach to evaluate and improve the effectiveness of risk management, control, and governance processes. Internal auditing reviews the reliability and integrity of information, compliance with policies and regulations, the safeguarding of assets, the economical and efficient use of resources, and established operational goals and objectives. Internal audits encompass financial activities and operations including systems, production, engineering, marketing, and human resources.”

The OSU/A&M Board of Regents specifies that the Department of Internal Audits is solely responsible to the board in the manner the board prescribes. Programs or the scope of work conducted by internal auditors is prescribed and approved by the board. All internal audit reports are submitted at the same time to the board and to the president of the institution involved. Institutional administrators provide written responses to all internal audit reports, copies of which are presented to the board in the manner it prescribes. Such responses are submitted to the board over the signature of each of the respective presidents or a member of a president's management team.

The annual audit plan approved by the board each June is designed to provide broad audit coverage, while devoting sufficient time to major audit risk areas. While an emphasis has been placed on areas specifically requested by management, business risks exist across all operations of the institutions. It is important, therefore, for Internal Audits to assess and promote the institutions' understanding and use of sound business practices. Internal Audits evaluates risk exposures and effectiveness of controls relating to governance, operations, and information systems technology for:

1. Reliability and integrity of financial and operational information;
2. Effectiveness and efficiency of operations;
3. Safeguarding of assets; and
4. Compliance with laws, regulations, and contracts.

Internal Audit's current audit plan is primarily devoted to financial, compliance, information systems technology, and operational auditing, as well as management consulting services. The office also co-sources specialized expertise from professional information technology service firms in order to augment its existing in-house information technology audit resources. The unit also has co-sourced construction consulting services when reviewing and evaluating construction activities.

State law requires institutions of higher education to have an annual financial audit conducted, in accordance with OMB Circular A-133, by an outside public accounting firm.^1.39 The external auditors are engaged by and report to the board. The Internal Audit Department works with the external auditors and considers the external audit coverage as it develops the internal audit plan to achieve maximum audit coverage.

Registrar Audits

OSU uses SIS Plus^1.40 for its student information system. SIS Plus is an integrated system that allows the various areas on campus to share information and data. Security for each area is controlled by that area. The Bursar,^1.41 Financial Aid,^1.42 Residential Life,^1.43 Human Resources,^1.44 Admissions,^1.45 and the Registrar's Office ^1.46 manage their own areas and determine who has the ability to view data and who has the ability to update data. The registrar's office controls access to the academic information in the system.

The registrar's office works with Institutional Research and Information Management^1.47 (IRIM) in setting security profiles and access to information. Security is granted to personnel based on their need to view increasing levels of detail and to update the system. All individuals on campus requiring access to academic information must fill out an SIS Access Request. These forms originate through IRIM, which verifies that the individual is currently employed and identifies his or her employment area. The form is sent to the associate registrar for final approval. Whether or not the person is given access to update information is based on the individual's job function. The screens containing information concerning the students' and instructors' PINS are blocked to everyone except a few employees in the Registrar's Office.

IRIM and the Registrar's Office monitor the system daily. The Registrar's Office runs a daily report listing any grades that have been changed, the day and time the grade was changed, and the operator ID of the individual making the change. This report is reviewed daily by the coordinator of academic records. The associate registrar also has access to this report for daily review. During enrollment, a daily report identifies any students who enrolled prior to their enrollment date and the individual who enrolled the student early. Prior to release of the “as of counts” at the beginning of the semester, several edit reports are run to verify the accuracy of the enrollment numbers. These reports are reviewed by the assistant registrar in charge of fee adjustments. A weekly visa status report identifies any student whose visa type does not coincide with his or her residency status. At the beginning of the semester, a faculty/staff fee waiver report compares the requests for the faculty/staff fee waiver to the individual's status as a full-time employee before the fee waiver is processed in the system.

IRIM daily monitors individual operator IDs, identifying individuals who are no longer employed by the university, in order to terminate their access to SIS. During enrollment, a daily report identifies students who were enrolled using the “permit” function in the system. The “permit” function overrides all holds in the system, which include closed sections, fire code, etc. Over-enrollments must be dealt with immediately and corrected by the Registrar's Office or the academic department.

Security profiles and access to the system are periodically evaluated and adjusted as necessary. As enhancements are made to the system and the web, IRIM personnel and the associate registrar review the profiles and make necessary adjustments.

Criterion One Conclusion

Strengths

1. The OSU System's mission statement and those of the various OSU entities, as well as the strategic plan, clearly and publicly articulate OSU's commitments and consider various constituents' input, ensuring widespread agreement and coordination of goals.
2. The university strives to recognize the dignity and worth of each person in all phases of its operations making diversity a core value in its strategic plan, and evidenced especially by its Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action program; diversity-enhancing academics, publications, and scholarships; Committee for Campus Accessibility; and the director of affirmative action and vice president for institutional diversity positions.
3. The university's governance structure and strategic planning process provide opportunities for collaborative decision-making among OSU's various constituents.
4. The university has a commitment to meet the highest standards of integrity, evident in the OSU Strategic Plan, policies, procedures, and internal audits.

Challenges: Actions for Going Forward

1. Ensure implementation, appropriate assessment, and ongoing review of the OSU System Strategic Plan.
   ACTION: The University Planning Council, consisting of faculty, staff, and students from each campus, will review the planning documents, evaluate progress, and make necessary updates.
2. Review efforts to enhance access to higher education through the OSU System to increase degree holders in Oklahoma and grow the OSU System to meet changing state demographics and gaps in educational attainment.
   ACTION: Implement the Restore, Reward, and Grow plan in order to increase efforts to hire, promote, energize, and retain excellent and diverse administrators, faculty, and staff to foster an environment that can recruit, retain, and graduate students from every cultural and socio-economic group in the state.
3. Enhance the image of the OSU System to promote an institutional culture capable of achieving a more lofty ambition as delineated in the strategic plan.
   ACTION: Utilize image management and marketing strategies to play major roles in changing the perceptions of various constituencies.

---

Criterion Two: Preparing for the Future

The organization's allocation of resources and its process for evaluation and planning demonstrate its capacity to fulfill its mission, improve the quality of its education, and respond to future challenges and opportunities.

OSU's planning documents provide evidence of the university's awareness of the relationships between educational quality, student learning, and the diverse, complex, global, and technological world in which the university and its students exist. OSU's strategic plan states that the university will educate students to be lifelong learners who are intellectually and ethically prepared to serve and lead in an increasingly complex global society. In addition, the university's vision statement makes it clear that OSU's culture will support diversity, academic freedom, high aspirations, and mutual respect. The OSU-Stillwater and OSU-Tulsa Strategic Plans^2.1 and the strategic plans of the units within the system contain strategic goals, critical success factors, and objectives for addressing educational quality in a diverse, complex, and technological world.

OSU's planning processes involve internal constituents and, where appropriate, external constituents.^2.2 During the strategic planning process, OSU's president presented the vision for the future success of OSU at town hall meetings throughout the state and solicited input from stakeholders, including community organizations and community members at large. This vision is articulated in key documents^2.3 and addresses such issues as strategic planning, transformational culture, funding for the future, linking performance and budgeting, marketing, and messaging.

OSU's vision for the future is outlined in its strategic plan.^2.4 Goals and objectives have been outlined at every level of the university. The University Planning Council^2.5 is charged with overseeing the implementation of the plan and reporting on its progress. In addition, OSU has adopted well-established and effective evaluation systems that help the university community understand how and why some programs are succeeding and why some must be updated to meet changing needs and to fulfill the university's mission. Funding will be tied to strategic planning goals, which are aimed at meeting future challenges and developing and enhancing new opportunities.

Core Component 2a

The organization realistically prepares for a future shaped by multiple societal and economic trends.

OSU's various evaluation and survey processes, as well as data gathered from outside sources, help the university learn more about the needs of the society it serves. It learns what its students and potential students want from their college careers and the type of new or revised educati