OSU names Wikle Ombuds officer
Monday, September 30, 2024
Media Contact: Shannon Rigsby | Public Information Officer | 405-744-9081 | shannon.rigsby@okstate.edu
Dr. Thomas Wikle, retired Regents Service Professor in the OSU Department of Geography, has been appointed as Ombuds officer.
The OSU Ombuds Office was established in October 2013 to promote a supportive learning and working environment at OSU. The office serves as a resource for all members of the OSU system on the Stillwater, OSU-Tulsa, and Okmulgee campuses (faculty, students, staff, administrators and post-doctoral fellows) and offers a safe, confidential place to talk about campus-related problems. Wikle begins his new role on Oct. 1.
Wikle joined the Department of Geography in 1989 as an assistant professor. Over his 33 years as a faculty member, he authored more than 140 publications and served as principal investigator for 30 grants including nine funded by the National Science Foundation. He brings considerable administrative experience to the ombuds position, having served as department head for six years and associate dean in the College of Arts and Sciences for 21 years. Wikle is a past chair of OSU’s Academic Appeals Board and the university-wide assessment and improvement committee. He also served on the Faculty Council’s Academic Standards Committee and as a member of the Committee on Student Organizations.
After three decades as a member of the Cowboy family, OSU Chief of Staff Jerome Loughridge championed Wikle as a good fit for the position.
“Any individual who invests decades of their life into an academic institution and is willing to bring their wisdom back can make a critical difference to the health of a university,” Loughridge said. “Dr. Wikle has a history of leadership, listening and service. I want to personally thank him for committing, once again, to serve Oklahoma State in such a significant capacity. This university values open and free communication and the role of ombuds officer is a testament to that commitment.”
He has also been active in graduate education as research advisor for 28 masters and three doctoral students. For several years, he was faculty advisor for OSU’s chapter of Gamma Theta Upsilon, geography’s international honor society. In 2013, he was selected as the organization’s 34th international president. Wikle is a recipient of OSU’s Regents Distinguished Teaching Award and the National Council for Geographic Education’s Distinguished Teaching Achievement Award. Since he retired, Wikle continues to work with students as a flight instructor at Stillwater Regional Airport.