At OU-Tulsa, where the average age of a student is about 35, the goal can be as much about changing a profession as it is prepping for one.

Susan Bynum, vice president of OU-Tulsa, said she can relate.

“I went to law school in my 30s,” she said. “I did an absolute pivot on my career path. It was so important to me to be able to do that. I’m thrilled to be able to provide that same service to so many people.”

Bynum, who assumed her role at OU in January, was guest speaker Monday at the Tulsa Regional Chamber’s Executive Committee Meeting at the Chamber offices.

She spoke in detail about the University of Oklahoma and OU-Tulsa, touching on topics such as the new OU Polytechnic Institute in Tulsa, plans for a new OU cancer center in Tulsa, and OU’s entry into the Southeastern Conference (SEC).

Housed at OU-Tulsa, the OU Polytechnic Institute will focus on high-demand, advanced and applied technology-based education. It will launch its cybersecurity class this fall, and its applied artificial intelligence and software development and integration classes in the fall of 2025.

More than 3,500 computer and IT jobs are projected to open in Oklahoma by 2026, Bynum said.

“The idea is to make these students ready to go out and take these IT jobs immediately, so you don’t have to train them,” she said. “We’re really working with industry partners to make sure those students are career-ready.”

Emphasizing OU’s strong medical reputation – the university educates 80% of Oklahoma’s healthcare workforce – Bynum heralded the expansion of the Oklahoma City-based Stephenson Cancer Center to Tulsa, citing its great need for northeastern Oklahoma.

Oklahoma ranks fourth in the nation for cancer-related deaths, Bynum said, and according to the National Cancer Institute, American Indians in Oklahoma have a mortality rate that is 1.5 times higher than any other state in the United States.

Fundraising for the Stephenson Cancer Center in Tulsa has begun. Already on campus, however, is an integrated immunology center, whose labs store more than 250,000 bio specimens such as blood and saliva.

“They are in these cryogenic chambers like from Austin Powers,” Bynum said with a smile. “I’m happy that they stay there. But they use those to measure different kinds of bio markers for disease.” 

The lab has been used as central processing for an NCAA concussion study as well as for a study to examine the treatment of alcohol abuse, Bynum said.

The University of Oklahoma officially joined the SEC this month, moving from its longtime affiliation with the Big 12 Conference. OU will benefit from the more than $104.5 billion that all 16 SEC schools drive into their state economies, Bynum said.

“We would love to see how we could bring some of that to Tulsa,” Bynum said.