The University of Oklahoma already is the fourth fastest-growing research university in the country, sitting around $517 million in annual expenditures.
But OU President Joseph Harroz Jr. wants his school to breathe in even more rarefied air.
“We believe we have visibility over the next five years to a billion dollars,” he said. “That puts us in a very different space.”
Alongside OU-Tulsa Vice President Susan Bynum, Harroz framed OU’s pursued fulfillment of its “Lead On, University” strategic plan Monday at the Tulsa Regional Chamber’s Executive Committee meeting.
Harroz was named OU president about six years ago after serving nine years as the dean of the College of Law.
In three years, OU’s freshmen classes have surged more than 30%, and the school is aiming to surpass 40,000 in enrollment in 18 months, he said.
Also, the average cost for an Oklahoman to attend OU, after accounting for scholarships and discounts, is 27% lower than it was six years ago, Harroz said.
“To have excellence and to have opportunity, you have to make sure it’s affordable,” he said. “OU is a research institution. That’s what we have to be really good at.”
OU has chosen four strategic research areas: 1) healthcare, 2) energy, 3) severe weather and 4) national security and defense.
Health care in Oklahoma was transformed through a 2021 merger that created OU Health, establishing the state’s leading comprehensive academic health system.
Additionally, OU Health Stephenson Cancer Center – Oklahoma’s only NCI-designated cancer center – continues to expand its reach. A new location has opened in Norman and a state-of-the-art facility in Tulsa is scheduled to open in about 22 months, Harroz said.
“That brings in a whole new generation of healthcare,” he said. “Bringing Stephenson to northeast Oklahoma is critical. (Cancer care) has to reach the entire state.”
As part of its strategy, OU also wants its students to reach the workforce sooner. It is actively developing 90-credit-hour (three-year) bachelor’s degrees for several high-demand fields to reduce student costs and accelerate workforce entry.
Programs including cybersecurity, AI, and social work are under consideration to be shortened from the traditional 120-hour requirement.
Tulsa’s OU Polytechnic Institute, which offers bachelor’s completion and graduate degree programs focused on advanced technology and innovation, opened in 2024.
“We think that 90-hour polytech degrees where the average salaries are $75,000 to $80,000 a year, where they put you in a good place to be leaning forward in the job market of the future, makes sense,” Harroz said. “Some folks don’t like it, and they are pushing back. We are going to push harder because I think it’s what we critically need for our state.”