A message was sent out to the SWOSU Community clarifying what the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education’s decision to delete or suspend several “low-producing” degree programs at some Oklahoma colleges and universities means for SWOSU. Read the full message here:
Dear SWOSU students, faculty, and staff,
You may have seen recent news about the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education voting to delete or suspend several “low-producing” degree programs at some Oklahoma colleges and universities. This message explains what that decision means for SWOSU.
The Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education December 4, 2025, meeting agenda and Appendix A, posted on the OSHRE website (https://okhighered.org/state-system/state-regents-meetings), provide a public summary of the review for each institution. For SWOSU, those materials show that:
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SWOSU offers 78 degree programs.
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20 programs were identified as “low-producing” for this review.
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All 20 of those programs were granted exceptions that allow them to continue.
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Zero SWOSU programs were placed in the deletion or suspension categories.
In short, no SWOSU degree programs are being deleted or suspended as a result of this review, and all current SWOSU majors remain available.
“Low-producing” in this context refers to statewide benchmarks for enrollment and degrees awarded, not to program quality. When a program is identified as low-producing, institutions may request exceptions in categories such as collaborative delivery, shared costs, or planned enrollment growth, which focus on improvement and alignment with workforce needs rather than elimination.
Statewide headlines have focused on the 41 programs deleted and 21 suspended at other public institutions, including some at the University of Oklahoma. While that coverage is accurate for those campuses, we want the SWOSU community to have clear and direct information about our own programs.
For students, this means you may continue in your current major and work with your advisor as usual. For faculty and staff, deans and department chairs will receive more detailed information about the programs included in the exception categories.
According to information provided by the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education, SWOSU will continue all of its existing degree programs while we work with faculty and the State Regents staff to strengthen enrollment and align our offerings with Oklahoma workforce needs.
Thank you for all that you do for the SWOSU community.
Sincerely,
Patsy Parker, PhD
Interim Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs
Bernhardt Scholar
phone: 580.774.3771 | [email protected]
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