Historic capital bond passage leads to brighter future for Oklahoma's public colleges and universities

Higher education in the state of Oklahoma has a brighter future thanks to the $475 million capital bond issue and $25 million bond bank signed into law recently by Gov. Brad Henry. Part of the proceeds from the state’s education lottery, passed in 2004, will be used to pay the debt for the capital bonds. Read more.

Cameron SIFE team wins first place in business plan competition, earns $20,000

Having a sound business plan always pays dividends.

For Cameron University’s Students In Free Enterprise (SIFE) team, an excellent business plan turned into a $20,000 payday.

The SIFE team won first place in the inaugural 2005 Donald W. Reynolds Governor’s Cup Collegiate Business Plan Competition, a statewide contest that included 26 student teams from 14 Oklahoma colleges and universities. Read more.

International aid agency established at Oklahoma Diabetes Center

Insulin for Life, an international not-for-profit aid agency established in Australia in 1986, recently established a United States affiliate at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center’s Oklahoma Diabetes Center. Managed by Dr. Alicia Jenkins with the support of Dr. Timothy Lyons, section chief of Diabetes and Endocrinology, the OU Health Sciences Center has sent supplies to Rwanda, Bolivia, South America, Russia and China. Read more.

Northeastern debuts Cherokee Education degree

Campus conversation will take on whole a “new” language as Northeastern debuts the Bachelor of Arts in Education in Cherokee Education. Believed to be the nation’s only four-year degree offered in a native language, the program prepares students for K-12 teaching positions in Cherokee (speaking, reading, writing) and provides them with a foundation in Cherokee culture and heritage. Read more.

Southwestern and Clinton Public Schools join forces to help math and science teachers

Southwestern Oklahoma State University in Weatherford and Clinton Public Schools recently received a competitive grant in the amount of $289,461 entitled “Oklahoma Rural Mathematics and Science Partnerships (OK-RMSP) Institutes” from the Oklahoma State Department of Education.

The grant will provide funding for a yearlong program intended to increase content knowledge, update teaching methods, and create standards-based mathematics and science lessons for K-12 teachers in rural western Oklahoma. Read more.