USAO President stands by changes to university as students push back

Last week, the USAO Board of Regents decided to pass changes to the university proposed by President Kayla Hale, despite a vote of no confidence and concerns from faculty, students, and alumni.

The changes will drastically impact how much involvement faculty have outside the classroom and how they're compensated for the work they do. Additionally, the changes will impact the structure of courses and curriculum.

According to those who attended the Board of Regents meeting, faculty were not given an opportunity to present their thoughts on the changes. Further, the only time during the meeting in which the 40-1 vote of no confidence was mentioned was to point out that the results of the vote were "sent to everyone but President Hale."

Once the changes were passed, students immediately began organizing to make their disapproval known. They posted to social media and gathered on campus to protest. In response to their protests, a Student Town Hall was planned for Dr. Hale to address student concerns and questions.

Dark Roast Report attempted to reach out to Hale for the second time about the changes and the Student Town Hall but never heard back.

According to USAO Communications major, Kassidy Pameticky, the Student Town Hall was originally promoted as a panel style discussion between students and President Hale and her team. However, she said it ended up being Hale up front with her team to the side. Pameticky said students would use a QR code to submit questions and would be brought a mic when it was their turn.

While Pameticky thought the way the event was structured was effective for such a large group, she didn't feel like the event was actually productive. She explained that she felt Hale was more concerned with her image than making students feel better which was reflected through Hale cutting students off and "snapping" at one. Ultimately, Pameticky left just before the meeting ended because she felt frustrated that nothing was achieved. She noted that many students seemed to leave the meeting with more questions than they had arrived with.

For Pameticky and many of the students at USAO, the changes to faculty is the biggest concern. Pameticky explained that she had a change of plans with where she was planning to attend college when she graduated high school and just happened to attend USAO for an event. While there, she wandered around the campus where she was discovered by a faculty member who offered to give her a tour. The welcoming nature of that experience sold her on the school. She said it was "love at first sight."

From that moment on, the sense of community has been what most appeals to Pameticky, which is the case for many students at the small school. Pameticky admitted that without the sincere guidance of faculty, she wouldn't even be able to afford to attend school. She expressed gratitude for the continual outpouring of support that takes place across the campus.

"Our community is top-notch. I love how much we take care of each other here," Pameticky said.

It's this very sentiment around the culture of the school that has many students, alumni, and faculty members concerned. Pameticky said when she found out about the changes through social media and rumors, she immediately took her concerns to her professors. She mentioned that two of her professors were brand new and she was worried they were going to pack up and leave after having just arrived.

Pameticky noted that from what she's heard, students and faculty are experiencing a lot of uncertainty, which is being channeled as frustration. She said she spoke with some friends that attend OU who commented that the changes sounded like how things were handled there in Norman, a notably larger school. Pameticky said that just made her feel more frustrated because it worried her for the future of the personal, community-oriented atmosphere of USAO.

"I'm just a little nervous. I am a senior, so a lot of these changes aren't going to affect me as much as it's gonna impact everybody else. I personally lucked out there, but I'm incredibly passionate about keeping our Communication Department alive and thriving and I don't know how that's going to happen now with all these changes," Pameticky said.

Pameticky said that in the Student Town Hall, Hale pointedly clarified that "shared governance does not mean equal power," which she feels was mentioned to let students and faculty know that their opinions and feedback wouldn't change things. Pameticky added that she knows that money will determine what the final say about the changes is.

Hale also commented on that matter of money during the Town Hall, focusing on the finances of the school as the motivation for the changes. She backed this claim by noting that 55 colleges close a year, especially in the private sector. She described the funding concerns as happening at a national level.

One student asked Hale to elaborate on her use of "funding strategy" to describe the changes. In response, she explained that paying staff and faculty takes up 80% of the overall budget, leaving just 20% to be used elsewhere. She then went on to say that if changes weren't made, the school could lose its financial aid due to changes happening at a federal level.

"I'm a steward of your tuition dollars, as well as the State of Oklahoma's tax dollars, and with this new funding formula, there is very little room. We either move forward or we're going to lose money," Hale said at the Town Hall.

On the topic of finances, another student questioned how paying professors less for classes with fewer students, despite the course structure, is going to benefit graduation rates.

"The current faculty handbook says any class under ten will be reviewed by the Vice President of Academic Affairs and the Dean of that unit, so that exists already. What I'm trying to do is make sure that in these classes we have a process and procedure that allows for equity," Hale responded.

Pameticky expressed that one of her fears around the changes is that smaller courses that are required to graduate will be eliminated or moved around, making it harder for seniors to finish school by their anticipated graduation date. She worries that this would prolong the need for funding beyond the allotted window that some financial assistance providers enforce.

In relation, Pameticky's biggest concern about the financial state of the school, is how financial assistance will be affected for students like her, that require it to go to school. While Hale did mention financial aid in the Town Hall, Pameticky felt the President's comments didn't address her concerns.

"This new Federal Financial aid rule, which is being applied to us and to every university in the country right now, has within it that weapon of taking away Federal Financial Aid. If we don't respond in a way that gets us into some kind of compliance – and I know I received an email today from a faculty member saying 'Don't do it. Don't follow these rules and regulations' – then we get no funding at all," Hale said. "See how that presents a problem for me as well?"

Despite having concerns about how her financial assistance and graduation timeline will be impacted by the changes, Pameticky said she is most concerned about how the community of the school will be affected. She said she believes that USAO's sense of community is its greatest asset, above the price and size of the school.

Pameticky noted that what she finds most troubling about President's Hale's push for these changes is what she perceives as a sense of betrayal. Hale had attended USAO as a Communications major too, and even had some of the same professors, according to Pameticky. Further, she said she had a positive relationship with Hale before the changes were proposed and she can't understand how someone she looked up to and had the same academic experience could believe that these changes were the best thing for the school.

Pameticky did acknowledge that she believes state leadership played a large role in enforcing the changes, but also wishes Hale had pushed back. She pointed out that USAO is the only liberal arts school in the state and believes the changes "really just ripped out the core of USAO." She reiterated a point that many have made about these changes targeting factors of the school that make it unique. She went on to say that she believes Hale is trying to justify the changes by pointing out that they're "standard at other schools."

During the Student Town Hall, one student asked Hale how she intends to re-establish the trust and respect of faculty. Pameticky said she felt Hale's response brushed off the question and seemed to suggest that healing that relationship was not her responsibility.

"There was a vote of no confidence taken that me and one other member showed to you, and that resolution was shared with everyone but me. Faculty did not send me a copy of that," Hale said. "I'm sorry for that. I've reached out to the Faculty Association President twice and said 'I'm ready to have any conversation that you want' and I sincerely think we can only have that understanding if we continue to talk to each other."

Pameticky expressed that she's trying to maintain some level of optimism as she navigates her final year at the school. She did remark that seeing new freshmen on campus already passionately invested in what's happening with the changes is inspiring. She said that her hope at this point is that there can be some level of compromise between the president and faculty.

"I don't want this school to lose its personality – who it is, because that's what makes this school this school, and that's what has brought so many people together. I don't understand where we lost the plot," Pameticky concluded.