News

Letter to Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education in Opposition of Executive Order 2026-07

Following Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt's Executive Order 2026-07, which requests the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education (OSRHE) dismantle tenure at the state's public colleges and universities, the Alliance sent the below letter to the OSRHE urging the body to assert its constitutional autonomy and reject this executive overreach.

‍

February 18, 2026

‍RE: Executive Order 2026-07 and the Preservation of Tenure and Institutional Autonomy

Dear Chair Warmington and the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education:

On behalf of the Alliance for Higher Education and the undersigned organizations, I am writing in response to the alarming executive order issued by Governor Stitt that requests the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education dismantle tenure at the state’s public colleges and universities under the false premise of “accountability, transparency, and measurable outcomes.”

Executive Order 2026-07 calls for academic excellence while it seeks to limit the very pillars that allow knowledge generation, innovation, and competitiveness to thrive: the freedom to explore controversial ideas and cutting-edge research without the fear of dismissal based on political and institutional whims.

The purpose of tenure is often misunderstood and easily misconstrued. From the outside, it may seem to be an unnecessary luxury. However, it simply provides the stability and due process most workers need to thrive while acknowledging that deep research and understanding of good teaching for student success does not happen in a small amount of time. The narrative of faculty who magically become unproductive after earning tenure and then avoid standard post-tenure review processes is simply false. Further, the executive order’s attempt to treat specific groups of faculty as unworthy of tenure because of the students they teach and work they do is unproductive.

Maintaining tenure is a proven method to the outcomes the Governor desires, and the higher education sector welcomes a focus on accountability. To advance that conversation, long-standing pillars of academic excellence like tenure must remain, even if they evolve at the institutional level, with faculty involved in the process. Tenure is meant to protect viewpoint diversity and nurture student success. It is a fundamental principle of Oklahoma’s educational structure that the State Regents—not the executive branch—maintain sole authority over. Attempts to circumvent these established channels constitutes executive encroachment and bypassing these processes would compromise the self-governance required for institutions to maintain accreditation and fulfill their missions.

If the administration’s goal is return on investment, we must look at the existing data. According to the State Regents’ June 2025 report, Oklahoma’s public higher education system is one of the state's most efficient economic drivers. Every dollar of state appropriations invested in state system colleges and universities yields $17.48 in economic output and supports and generates:

$14.61 billion to the state’s economy;
110,000 jobs across Oklahoma; and
$461.8 million in state, county, and local taxes

Limiting tenure is a direct threat to this $14 billion engine and will cause a “brain drain” in which the brightest minds from within Oklahoma and around the world choose to pursue their teaching and research elsewhere, hurting students and the state’s long-term economic prosperity. This will throttle new business generation, curb future research impact, and marginalize the state’s intellectual infrastructure, making Oklahoma less competitive on the national stage.

We urge this body to stand for higher education. To assert its constitutional autonomy, reject this executive overreach, and ensure the state’s systems of higher education continue to advance academic excellence in support of economic opportunity and the public good.

Sincerely,

Mike Gavin, PhD

President and CEO

Alliance for Higher Education