Faculty, staff cover for professor on medical leave

Dr. Regina Bennett, associate professor of English, is on medical leave for the semester.

Bennett’s usual classload includes classics of Western culture, composition, Western literature, world literature, and values and culture. She received her bachelor’s and master’s degrees at OCU. Though there was no minor at the time, she specialized in women’s studies. Bennett joined the faculty team in 2000, after teaching at OU, OCCC and Rose State.

Bennett is  stable but unable to teach this semester. Her classes were split between OCU faculty and staff in the English department. Bennett would like to keep the details of her medical condition private, officials said.

Dr. Amrita Sen, associate professor of English, took over Bennett’s world literature class sections. Students originally enrolled in Bennett’s class planned to take world literature: wild women around the world. The week before classes began, they were notified via email that the class was changed to Sen’s course, world literature: mythologies.

“I really did try to study up on wild women and see if I could adapt Dr. Bennett’s course, so students could learn what they enrolled in,” Sen said. “In the end, I decided it would be in everyone’s best interest to stick with mythology. We don’t exactly have wild women, but we do have some crazy, powerful ones like Clytemnestra.”

One student said she felt neutral about the change.

“Since I didn’t really want to take wild women, but I had to, I’m not that mad about it,” said Kyra McGowen, finance sophomore. “Dr. Sen seems like a good professor.”

Deborah McIntyre, adjunct professor of English, will take over Bennett’s composition class, and her classics of Western culture course will be co-taught by Dr. Nathan Ross, associate professor of philosophy, and Dr. Harbour Winn, professor emeritus, who came out of retirement to help cover the class.

“Basically, we got lots of wonderful people to help out,” said Dr. Tracy Floreani, English department chairwoman “She needs to heal. She needs time to get well, so we’ll support her.”