President Joseph Harroz Jr. Is joined by Regents’ Professor of the Clara Luper Department of African and African American Studies Dr. Karlos Hill and Marilyn Luper Hildreth, the daughter of University of Oklahoma icon Clara Luper. For Black History Month, the guests and President Harroz discuss Clara Luper’s living legacy within the university as well as the state of Oklahoma.

0:00 – 1:30 Introduction

1:31 – 3:40 Guest intros

3:41 – 11:10 Clara Luper’s life

11:30 – 17:30 The Katz Drug Store sit-in

17:31 – 28:45 Luper's legacy of radical love

28:46 – 36:18 What Luper’s legacy teaches us what we must do

University of Oklahoma President Joseph Harroz Jr. is joined by Student Veteran Association President and former United States Army Green Beret Harrison Anderson and the director of the Aerospace and Defense Program at the Michael F. Price College of Business, Shad Satterthwaite. Both guests served in the United States military and speak to the unique experience on a college campus that a student veteran will go through. 

0:00 – Intro

4:19 – Why Harrison chose OU as a student following the service

5:55 – OU as a friendly environment to current and former servicemen and women

9:13 – Some of the challenges a student veteran faces transitioning from the military into college life

13:18 – What OU and the SVA is doing to make OU better for student veterans and the importance of the new Veteran Zone

17:02 – The growth at OU for student veterans

19:22 – The ROTC relationship

20:54 – Recent gift to renovate the Armory

23:18 – Aerospace and Defense at OU

30:00 – Signing off

President Joseph Harroz Jr. Is joined by Nadine Strossen, the John Marshall II Harlan Professor of Law Emerita at New York Law School and past president of the American Civil Liberties Union. Strossen’s appearance on Conversations with the President was a part of the University of Oklahoma’s annual celebration of Free Speech Week. Harroz and Strossen discuss the importance of reinforcing and encouraging freedom of speech, thought and discourse on college campuses and everywhere.

0:00 – 2:52 – Introduction

2:53 – Strossen's introduction

5:38 -  Strossen’s Elevator Pitch on Free Speech

11:52 – Hate Speech

13:00 – The need for a civics education on the First Amendment

17:39 – Disagreeing with someone

21:57 – Strossen's book, Free Speech: What Everyone Needs to Know

27:03 – Discussing “the other”

33:40 – Wrapping up

President Joe Harroz is joined by the Senior Vice President and Provost of the University of Oklahoma André Denis-Wright. The two discuss OU’s trajectory over the next five years, the changing nature of incoming students as well as the importance of OU’s strategic plan.

1:07 – Denis-Wright intro

3:37 – Provost duties on the Norman campus

11:09 – Success over the next four/five years

13:46 – Changing nature of incoming students

18:16 – Polytechnic Institute

20:01 – Strategic Plan importance

23:30 – OU as a research enterprise 

President Joe Harroz is joined by Gary Raskob, Ph.D., the Provost and Senior Vice President of the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center. Today’s conversation deals with OU HSC, the three missions of HSC as well as how OU is addressing health care needs within the state. 

0:00 – Introduction

1:03 – Gary Raskob introduction

4:28 – OU HSC’s layout

5:38 – HSC’s three core missions

9:08 – Oklahoma's need for nurses during COVID

13:00 – Addressing the need for more physicians within Oklahoma

15:22 – Healthcare research importance

17:15 – Cancer research and the implication of new technologies

22:03 – Diabetes research at the Harold Hamm Diabetes Center

25:38 – How healthcare can be improved in Oklahoma

26:48 – Pediatric Behavioral Health

30:00 -- Outro

President Joe Harroz is joined by Teri Reed, Ph.D., the inaugural Director of the Polytechnic Institute based at OU-Tulsa. The two share thoughts on what a Polytechnic actually does for the university, the state as well as the region. With the institute’s expertise lying at the intersection of business, education and technology, the future for this new school is incredibly bright. 

0:00 – 3:17 Intro

3:18 - Teri Reed introduction

5:29 – On what a Polytech is

6:44 – What kind of students that pursue a polytechnic degree

8:44 – On the demand for STEM/Polytechnic degrees in the workforce

10:00 – The demand in Oklahoma

13:41 – How this could help attract businesses and jobs to the state

15:07 – Cyber security gaps to fill

21:09 – How A.I. affects the workplace

24:33 – The kinds of people interested in pursuing these careers

28:12 – What students become when they graduate with their polytechnic degree

31:18 – Harroz's closing thoughts

President Joe Harroz is joined by Randall Stephenson via Zoom. Stephenson is the former CEO of AT&T, retiring in 2021. Stephenson, who was born in Moore, Oklahoma, earned his master’s degree from the University of Oklahoma in 1986 and went to work for Southwestern Bell until working his way up. He earned a status as a global leader in technology and innovation.

(0:00 – 2:20) Introduction

(2:23 – 3:39) Randall Stephenson’s OU origin story

(3:40 – 6:48) How OU prepared Stephenson for professional life

(6:49 – 9:22) Stephenson’s advice for OU graduates

(9:23 – 14:44) The importance of affordable higher education

(14:45 – 20:02) Adapting to the world in business

(20:03 – 24:30) Stephenson’s “business done right” as a part of the Business Roundtable

(24:31 – 28:11) The greatest threat to America’s status as a global superpower in business

(28:12 – 32:49) Oklahoma’s aim in preparing students for the professional world

(32:50 – 35:33) Sneak peak on Stephenson’s commencement speech

(35:34) Final thoughts

President Joe Harroz is joined by the head coach of the women’s basketball team, Jennie Baranczyk. Among the topics discussed are the strength of multiple women’s sports at the University of Oklahoma, Jennie’s now-famous daughter, Jordi and the trajectory of the program under her leadership. 

(0:00 – 1:49) Intro 

(1:50) Baranczyk introduced 

(3:00) The first two years under her coaching 

(4:00) Women’s sports success at OU 

(6:27) Baranczyk speaks on her recent Big 12 title team 

(8:24) The phenomenon of Jordi Baranczyk 

(13:04) The increase in viewership in women’s basketball 

(17:24) NIL’s impact on recruiting and college athletics 

(24:20) The demands on modern coaches 

(29:02) Coaching at Oklahoma 

(30:36) Closing 

President Joe Harroz sits down with Dr. Gregg Garn, the dean of College of Professional and Continuing Studies and the vice president of online learning at the University of Oklahoma, to discuss OU Online. As online education becomes more synonymous with a normal learning experience for many, President Harroz and Dr. Garn aim to fill in the blanks for questions people may have about the online experience. OU Online is growing at an exciting rate and today’s episode speaks to that growth.

0:00–2:42 – Introductions

2:43 -- Origins of OU Online

6:40 – The aim of OU Online’s programs

7:39 – What programs are offered

9:40 – The advantages of gaining a degree within OU Online

11:54 – Adult Degree Completion opportunities

13:40 – The challenge of keeping local students in-state who choose online programs

17:39 – Building community in an online environment

23:43 – Future of online education and OU Online

27:00 – How students should think of their online experience moving forward

President Joe Harroz is joined by Dr. George Henderson to discuss his place within the University of Oklahoma’s history. Dr. Henderson came to OU in 1967 and broke new ground in both the OU community and the city of Norman. Through his own life experiences prior to coming to OU, and his teaching history and interactions with students on campus, Dr. Henderson has created a legacy for positive change and inclusion for all. 

(0:00 – 3:24) Introduction and background of Dr. George Henderson 

(7:44) Dr. Henderson’s moment of realization during his younger days 

(10:03) Coming to Norman for the first time in 1967 

(13:10) Dr. Henderson first impressions of Norman and OU  

(20:39) Lessons from the Civil Rights movement 

(23:04) Harroz’s son’s story of meeting Dr. Henderson 

(27:20) Dr. Henderson recalls a story when his students influenced him to stay at OU 

(31:00) OU as a place of belonging 

(33:50) Harroz thanks Dr. Henderson for joining.