GOODWELL — In a development that seemed to surprise him, Jim Hess has been named the 20th president in Oklahoma State University’s history.
The Board of Regents for the Oklahoma Agricultural and Mechanical Colleges initially appointed Hess interim president at a Feb. 7 meeting four days after former president Kayse Shrum abruptly resigned in February. With three regents absent, but regent Rick Walker reassuring they also gave their support, the board voted unanimously to hire Hess on a three-year contract.
As interim president, Hess moved quickly to dismantle the Innovation Foundation days after an audit — one of the suspected causes of Shrum’s departure — alleged it improperly received millions of dollars. He hired Chris Kuwitzky as the university’s new chief financial officer, and he pitched the Senate on $295 million in appropriations to replace the OSU College of Veterinary Medicine’s languishing teaching hospital. Hess has been active on campus in his short interim tenure, and on his social media, it seems Hess has also leaned into the community involvement expected of a university president.
“While we could have spent an entire year searching for a new president, seeing Jim’s work up close over the past month has provided a level of insight and confidence that no interviews with outside candidates would have provided,” Walker said. “Jim has walked the halls of higher education in Oklahoma for decades. Throughout those years, he’s been the driving force for much of OSU’s success.”
Hess has worked within the OSU system since 1981, according to his LinkedIn, including as director of the OSU School of Healthcare Administration and vice provost of graduate programs for the OSU Center of Health Sciences. Possessing a doctorate of education, Hess is also the published author of 16 academic articles.
“I’m humbled. I greatly appreciate your confidence in my abilities. It’s an honor and a privilege to serve this university,” Hess said. “This moment is really not about me. It’s about the challenges and the opportunities ahead for this university, for our students and faculty and our staff and alumni and our donors. And I recognize that the presidency is not for the faint of heart, but what it really is about being a servant, as I know all of you are.”
Hess thanked everyone who had helped him get to this point in his career and said there was “no time to waste” in getting to work. The fallout from the Innovation Foundation audit, which alleged state laws may have been violated, will likely continue to have repercussions at the university as Hess begins his term.
He promised to “exercise collaborative leadership, definitive decision-making and keeping students front and foremost in every decision we have the opportunity to make.”
“I wish my mama was alive to see this,” Hess said. “I wish my mother-in-law was alive to see this — boy, would she be surprised.”
