Southwestern Oklahoma State University Undergraduate Catalog 2023-2024
working full time for YPS. Third, it laid the groundwork for a concurrent enrollment program. Southwestern Oklahoma State University offers nine graduate degrees. The Master of Teaching Degree was offered during the period 1953-1969. The Master of Education degree was inaugurated in 1969. Graduate programs leading to the following degrees have been added since 1969: Master of Business Administration, 1977; Master of Music, 1981; the professional doctorate, the Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD), 1998; the Master of Science in Management, 2007; the Master of Science in Community Counseling, 2009; the Master of Science in Healthcare Informatics and Information Management, 2014; the Specialist in Education (Ed.S.), 2015; and the Master of Science in Nursing in 2016 MISSION, VALUES AND VISION Southwestern Oklahoma State University is one of twenty-five institutions in the Oklahoma State System of Higher Education (Oklahoma Constitution, Article XIII-A, Section 1). The Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education (OSRHE) is the legal structure for public education at the collegiate level and is the coordinating board of all state institutions for higher education. Southwestern is one of six state-supported regional universities governed by the Regional University System of Oklahoma (RUSO). Southwestern Oklahoma State University provides access to higher education for all individuals without discrimination on the basis of race, national origin, gender, or disability status. Mission Statement Southwestern Oklahoma State University supports students and community through its integration of effective teaching, scholarly and creative endeavors, and civic engagement. Values Statement In pursuing the university’s mission, SWOSU faculty and staff are guided by a shared commitment to: • students , by providing high-quality instruction, involvement, services, scholarly endeavors, creative activities, and service learning. • achievement , by establishing a foundation for student success. • knowledge , by pursuing the exchange of ideas, research, and leadership for the public good. • respect , by fostering a safe, healthy, and diverse intellectual, cultural, and social environment that encourages emotional well-being. Vision Statement SWOSU will foster an inclusive environment that inspires intellectual excellence, responsible citizenship, professional development, and personal growth. Sayre Location Southwestern Oklahoma State University at Sayre enables the university to focus its mission to provide lower division programs and educational opportunities in higher education. The following institutional functions have been approved by the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education, and are considered essential components of the mission on the Sayre location: • To provide a lower division program of higher education for traditional and non-traditional students in Western Oklahoma and the Texas Panhandle. • To provide a general education that enables students to become informed responsible citizens.
HISTORICAL BACKGROUND Southwestern Oklahoma State University at Weatherford and Sayre are located on Interstate 40. SWOSU is authorized to offer curricula in arts and sciences, business, teacher education, and health sciences. The additional location at Sayre is authorized to provide Associate of Science and Associate of Applied Science degrees in both general and specialized areas of study, as well as career and technical education. SWOSU was established by an act of the Oklahoma Territorial Legislature in 1901 as the Southwestern Normal School, authorized to offer two years of training for public school teachers. The first classes met in 1903. Initially, four years of preparatory work for pre-college students were offered. In 1920, the preparatory (academy) courses were eliminated and two additional years of college work in teacher training were added. The State Legislature approved a change of name to Southwestern State Teachers College. The first baccalaureate degrees were awarded in May 1921. Other changes in name and purposes occurred in 1939 when the institution was designated as Southwestern State College of Diversified Occupations, and in 1941, when it became Southwestern Institute of Technology. During this two-year period, the college added a school of pharmacy, degree work in the arts and sciences, and trade schools. In 1949, the Oklahoma State Legislature changed the name of the institution to Southwestern State College, and in 1974, to Southwestern Oklahoma State University, without altering its purposes and objectives. On July 1, 1987, Sayre Junior College was merged with Southwestern Oklahoma State University as a branch campus designated Southwestern Oklahoma State University at Sayre. Southwestern Oklahoma State University at Sayre was founded as Sayre Junior College in 1938 under legislative authorization which permitted public high schools to add a 13th and 14th year of study to their curricula. Nineteen public schools took this step. In 1940, the college name was changed to Oklahoma Western Junior College; however, the original name was soon adopted again, and in May 1940 the first degrees were conferred. In 1956, Sayre Junior College moved from facilities occupied jointly with Sayre High School to its present location on old Highway 66. The merger with Southwestern Oklahoma State University marked the end of the Oklahoma community college system, since Sayre Junior College was the only such institution remaining of the original nineteen. The Sayre location is located 60 miles west of Weatherford. Its primary service area is western Oklahoma. It offers open admission to high school graduates as well as to students who do not hold a high school diploma. Southwestern Oklahoma State University at Yukon is approximately 10 miles west of Oklahoma City and 50 miles east of the SWOSU main campus in Weatherford. Its primary service area is Canadian County. Southwestern Oklahoma State University at Yukon was established after the creation of a partnership between SWOSU and Yukon Public Schools (YPS) on December 2, 2019. The original partnership created three programs. First, YPS made space available for the purpose of offering SWOSU undergraduate and graduate coursework. Second, it established a program in which YPS employees could complete undergraduate and graduate degrees through specialized programs both on the YPS campus and online. The degree completion program was established to allow YPS employees to gain education-related certifications and degrees while still
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