By John Dobberstein, Editor
A bill that authorizes Northeastern State University’s Broken Arrow campus to offer lower-division classes unanimously passed out of a state Senate committee Tuesday, which could eventually make it the first public 4-year university in the Tulsa metro.
As the Sentinel first reported last week, Senate Bill 701 would change state law that currently prevents NSU to from accepting freshmen students on campus. They note Broken Arrow is one of the largest cities in the nation to not be served by any 4-year universities, and Tulsa is one of the largest metro areas in the U.S. with no public 4-year school.
The University of Tulsa and Oral Roberts University are 4-year schools but are private.
Introduced by Sen. John Haste (R-Broken Arrow) and co-authored by State Sen. Christi Gillespie, SB701 modifies the location of the NSU-Broken Arrow branch to clarify the location is within the city of Broken Arrow, rather than Tulsa metro area, and it authorizes NSU-BA to offer lower-division courses on campus.
The bill now goes before the Senate for consideration. The Broken Arrow City Council unanimously approved a resolution Tuesday supporting the bill.
NSU President Rodney Hanley was present at the City Council meeting Tuesday and said one of his highest priorities since arriving in 2023 was, “to get the BA campus opened up” so students who want another option besides attending community college can get the full university experience.
“And having a 4-year university in Broken Arrow will contribute to the economic development of the entire Broken Arrow community and the entire region. This is very important to us at NSU,” Hanley said.
NSU Vice President of University Relations Danny Mabery said the legislative movement has, “been a long time coming and is the fruit of the hard work of you all sitting here, working with elected officials and community members to make a dream reality for students in Broken Arrow.”
Mabery noted that Broken Arrow lags behind the national average in citizens who have completed a bachelor’s degree. “Having a 4-year university that has opportunity to make an impact for our students and influence the workforce in a way that we can create new jobs and attract new industry in growing and thriving environment, is what educational systems like NSU are all about,” Mabery said.
The timing of the potential change is important, as the city recently broke ground on its Arrow Forge Innovation District in south Broken Arrow – a mixed-use project with retail, housing and employment where relationships with higher education will be key.
Mayor Debra Wimpee said she has heard some concerns that a 4-year campus in Broken Arrow could draw students away from the main Tahlequah campus, although she noted it may take a while before the Broken Arrow school would have the same atmosphere or offerings as a campus that has been in Tahlequah for decades. Hanley said he isn’t concerned about it because they are not parallel universities.
For example, he said, a student who wants to be an eye doctor at NSU’s College of Optometry could start in Broken Arrow but would have to graduate from the program in Tahlequah. “I think this model will benefit both the Broken Arrow and Tahlequah campuses. We look for enrollment to increase at both campuses.”
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