NEWS
NORMAN, Okla. – Rebecca Cruise, Ph.D., associate provost for global engagement at the University of Oklahoma, has been named a 2025-26 Alumni Fellow of the Southeastern Conference Academic Leadership Development Program (SEC ALDP). The initiative aims to support SEC faculty and early career administrators in becoming part of the next generation of academic leaders.
Cruise was previously named a 2024-25 SEC ALDP Fellow and is now OU’s first recipient of the program’s alumni fellowship, which connects faculty to other SEC universities to strengthen their knowledge and skills. Through this opportunity, she plans to learn from other leaders and staff at global engagement and international affairs offices about their domestic study away programs.
“We are thrilled that Associate Provost Cruise has been selected for this fellowship,” said OU Senior Vice President and Provost André-Denis Wright. “She has been critical in supporting a wide scope of student learning opportunities, and this program will advance those efforts.”
In addition to serving as OU’s senior international officer, Cruise is an associate professor of security studies and comparative politics in the College of International Studies (CIS) and the director of FYE Global Perspectives within CIS.
“Leadership development programs like ALDP maintain our university’s strong institutional momentum,” said Vice Provost for Faculty Sarah Ellis. “Through our SEC membership, these opportunities will continue to support our success.”
Earlier this year, four OU faculty members were named 2025-26 Fellows for the SEC ALDP program.
For more information about the SEC Academic Leadership Development Program, visit secsports.com.
About the University of Oklahoma
Founded in 1890, the University of Oklahoma is a public research university located in Norman, Oklahoma. As the state’s flagship university, OU serves the educational, cultural, economic and health care needs of the state, region and nation. For more information about the university, visit www.ou.edu.
Helen Zgurskaya and Valentin Rybenkov are leading a five-year, $5.3 million project funded by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases to find new ways to deliver lifesaving drugs directly into resistant pathogens.
Staff at the University of Oklahoma’s Division of Marketing and Communications (MarComm) have been recognized by two professional associations for their work on two major projects.
Five current and former University of Oklahoma employees were inducted yesterday evening into the Oklahoma Higher Education Hall of Fame. Selected for their achievements and leadership, the honorees were celebrated by the Oklahoma Higher Education Heritage Society at its 31st annual banquet and induction ceremony at the University of Central Oklahoma.
