Robert Henry left the judge’s bench to become the university’s president eight years ago. Since then, his accomplishments earned him multiple awards and accolades, and the campus community has come to know him as a friendly, personable face on campus.
Henry will retire as the university’s 17th president effective June 30. Martha Burger will assume the role the following day.
“The president is the face of the university, and, over the last eight years, I was so fortunate I was presented with all these awards and honors,” Henry said. “The community could tell that I was a part of the community and that OCU was a part of the community. I’m very pleased with that.”
Henry’s awards include the Governor George Nigh Public Service Arts Award in 2011, the Oklahoma Native Son Award in 2013, the Excellence in Leadership Award in 2015, the Spirit of Oklahoma Award in 2016, and lifetime achievement awards for his legal writing and interfaith work.
Interacting with the community
Henry said one of the best parts of his job was talking to students.
Kevin Chissoe, accounting junior, said he remembers Henry would sit with groups of students in the caf.
“When he sat with me and others around me, he would always ask how everything was going and actually have conversations with us,” Chissoe said. “He was always very respectful.”
Callie Michaud, design and production senior and OCULeads student, said she appreciates how involved Henry was. OCULeads, also known as the President’s Leadership Class, is a program “to identify leadership potential in incoming students.”
“I think his greatest accomplishment as president was how well known and well liked he was by the student body because he always put in so much effort into being present in the students’ lives, even in smaller departments,” Michaud said.
Henry also enjoyed attending as many campus productions as he could. Michaud said he always went to design and production showcases and talked to students about their work.
However, Henry had to take a medical leave of absence at the beginning of the academic year, which lessened his campus presence.
“Unfortunately, I had a couple problems with my heart. I had to have two open heart surgeries and that sort of hurt me the last couple of years,” he said. “I didn’t have the energy to get out and do quite as much, but I’m getting there now.”
Michaud said Henry still made an effort to reach out to students while he was on medical leave.
“Even when he was sick, he would still try his best to make it known that he wanted to be here for all of us,” she said. “He cares about each and every student and always makes an effort to be accessible to us, which I think is the best thing a president can offer their students.”
Michaud said Henry always showed genuine interest in students’ passions, even if he wasn’t knowledgable about them.
“I don’t think I’ve ever heard anyone say they don’t like him, and I think that’s an accomplishment in itself,” she said.
Working with a team
Henry said the job of president requires a lot of energy. And it was difficult to keep his energy levels high when there were events nearly every night, he said. Other difficulties of the job included dealing with campus property damages and arguments with insurance companies.
“However, I put together a really strong cabinet, and we all work really well together. I also have a superlative board of directors,” Henry said. “I never had to worry about my board’s commitment. My board was always ready to help. Those are things students don’t often get to know about.”
Henry said he’s grateful he had such strong support.
“None of these things I did. They were all ‘we did.’ It’s not possible for a single person,” he said. “I’ve had two great provosts, Susan Barber and Kent Buchanan. Those two have really been extremely helpful.”
Implementing change
One of the first things Henry did as president was restructure the university’s debt.
“It’s kind of crazy to say this, but maybe the biggest legacy he’ll leave behind is how he came in and he got into the financial situation,” Buchanan said. “He spent a lot of time early on going through his friends in the banking areas and trying to get these things under control. So that was a tremendous accomplishment for the university and really helped the university out.”
During Henry’s tenure, he oversaw the transition of the OCU School of Law to its new downtown location, which paved the way for the creation of the physician assistant program.
He also was instrumental in prioritization, a process that allowed officials to observe areas where money was spent and determine if changes should be made.
“He had to make the difficult decision to go through the prioritization process, which was very difficult for the campus, but also helped us get on track now where we haven’t had budget cuts in four years now,” Buchanan said.
Henry also oversaw the creation of the Chickasaw Warrior Garden and participated in Native American traditions. One of Henry’s favorite memories is receiving honorary membership to the Kiowa tribe at a powwow on campus, he said.
“I’ve done work with the Native American community for some time and they are very special to me,” Henry said. “They have a special role at OCU. The building of the Chickasaw Garden was a great thing that I loved, and I love it when I see students out there eating their lunch.”
With the addition of a physician assistant program and the prospective physical therapy program, Henry said the university is moving in the right direction, and he would like to see it stay on course. He emphasized the importance of a liberal arts education with a strong arts and sciences core.
“Regardless of whether you’re an actor or an athlete or an accountant, whatever your major, those general liberal arts courses are going to be important. It’s vitally important that the college of arts and sciences be sustained here,” he said. “I think we’re on the right path. I think we need to do more of the same.”
Saying goodbye
Henry’s parting message for the campus community is to “be of good cheer, be creative, be collaborative.”
“The education you got here is going to serve you well. The world appears to be a mixed-up place right now, but you can handle it,” he said. “Look at things differently, color outside of the box and be collaborative.”
By Miguel Rios, editor-in-chief emeritus
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