USAO is Oklahoma’s only public liberal arts college – so unique and so rare that only a handful of colleges like it exist in America.

No other public university in Oklahoma is ranked higher in U.S. News and World Report’s America’s Best Colleges.  No other public college in Oklahoma has a higher job placement rate.  No other baccalaureate college gives you greater access to faculty members.  No other school employs a higher percentage of faculty with the highest degree in their field: more than 93 percent!

No other public college in Oklahoma offers our unique, interdisciplinary, liberal arts core curriculum.  No other school works harder to bring all the disciplines together and create a learning experience for you as enriching and diverse as ours.

With a nearly 100-year-old mission unlike any school in Oklahoma, paired with the distinction of being the only campus in Oklahoma to be designated a National Historic District, this college is rare indeed.

This year we welcome nine new faculty members to the USAO family, five of which are new positions created by our Mission Enhancement Plan of 2005.  That plan was written during recent budget cuts, a time in which we envisioned rebuilding the infrastructure, reinforcing our historic mission, and expanding our vision.

And it worked.  Last year, the Mission Enhancement Plan drew $2.2 million in special funding from the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education – new funds to enhance our mission, one of the oldest in the state among all public colleges.

We are pleased to welcome Dr. Sean MacDonald, assistant professor of mathematics (University of Alabama at Birmingham); Tim Sullivan, assistant professor of art (University of Dallas of the Braniff Graduate School); Dr. Annick Bellemain, assistant professor of languages (University of Utah); Katie Simons, assistant professor of drama (University of Mississippi); Dr. Susan Bussey, assistant professor of English (Washington University, St. Louis); Dr. Sharon Brickman, assistant professor of education (University of Oklahoma); Dr. Jennifer McMahon, associate professor of English (SUNY Buffalo); Dr. Erik Guzik, assistant professor of economics (University of Massachusetts); and Dr. Steven Thomason, assistant professor of political science (University of Dallas).

What else makes USAO unique?  On June 25, 2006, the respected national Council on Public Liberal Arts Colleges (COPLAC), voted to accept USAO into membership, the only university in Oklahoma history to join the elite organization. COPLAC colleges command greater national visibility, which belongs primarily to our students and alumni.

I expect this new affiliation with like institutions across America will open doors, both for USAO and for you.

COPLAC’s mission is to identify and support high quality public liberal arts and sciences institutions. COPLAC colleges – like USAO – are distinguished by their commitment to provide a superior education to undergraduate students. These selective institutions have been recognized nationally as outstanding in many diverse ways, including small classes, innovations in teaching, personal interactions with faculty, opportunities for faculty-supervised research and supportive atmospheres.

We are about to invest nearly seven million dollars in campus capital projects, such as radical improvements to Canning Hall, the Art Annex, and the second and third floors of Senior Hall (the Old Hotel).  Other large-scale, visible projects include three public art installations and renovation of Home Management House and the President’s Home.  Lesser projects that serve critical if not ‘exciting’ needs are roof replacements, indoor and outdoor furniture, sidewalk repairs and parking lot repaving. We are dedicated to creating a campus environment you’d love to call home!

Being unique means being unusual, but also one of a kind. At USAO, we believe that you are a totally distinctive person with an unusual story and a future all your own. We are here to help you cultivate the vision, plan, and destiny to which only you can aspire.

Let’s go there together.

Uniquely yours,