Kennedy Thomason

2 weeks ago | ocolly.com | Kennedy Thomason

An Oklahoma State faculty member asked that their quotes questioning a proposed university policy not be used in an O’Colly article because they feared administrators would punish their department. “What I didn’t want to happen was to have the department bear the brunt of a decision I made,” the faculty member said recently. This faculty member isn’t alone.

2 weeks ago | ocolly.com | Kennedy Thomason

Oklahoma State’s 20th president acknowledged the university’s potential financial issues as faculty and students welcomed him to the role Tuesday. “We will be facing some financial headwinds, and I want to be forthright with you about that,” Jim Hess said. “As you all know, with great opportunities come great challenges. And we will have the opportunity to face a few headwinds along the way, and we’ll do so together, collaboratively.

2 weeks ago | ocolly.com | Kennedy Thomason

Oklahoma State’s 20th president acknowledged the university’s financial issues as faculty and students welcomed him to the role Tuesday. “We will be facing some financial headwinds, and I want to be forthright with you about that,” Jim Hess said. “As you all know, with great opportunities come great challenges. And we will have the opportunity to face a few headwinds along the way, and we’ll do so together, collaboratively.

2 weeks ago | ocolly.com | Kennedy Thomason

Note: This story has been updated. The OSU/A&M Board of Regents has elevated Jim Hess' title to president of Oklahoma State. In a meeting at Oklahoma Panhandle State University on Friday, as first reported by The Oklahoman, the regents held a 53-minute executive session before making Hess OSU's president. Hess was appointed to serve as interim president in February after former OSU President Kayse Shrum resigned suddenly amid allegations of mismanagement at the Innovation Foundation.

3 weeks ago | ocolly.com | Kennedy Thomason

Stillwater’s sales tax revenues are projected to remain flat. During a presentation of the FY26 proposed budget, Assistant City Manager Christy Cluck said the trend shows that collections are “leveling off.”“This is concerning since sales tax is the largest source of funding for our city’s general fund and the dependence on sales tax collections is one of the biggest constraints that Oklahoma cities operate under to fund general government services like public safety networks,” Cluck said.