Boren Taps Jabar Shumate For New VP of University Community Post
Former Tulsa state lawmaker Jabar Shumate named as OU’s vice president for university community
By COREY JONES World Staff Writer
A former state lawmaker from Tulsa was tapped Tuesday as the University of Oklahoma’s first vice president of the university community.
The new position was filled in the wake of the publicity about a video of OU fraternity members singing racist lyrics to the tune of “If You’re Happy and You Know It.”
University of Oklahoma President David Boren turned to Jabar Shumate, his former press secretary, in looking to move OU beyond the racism exhibited by white Sigma Alpha Epsilon members’ emphatic singing about lynching African-Americans and not allowing them into their fraternity.
Shumate, 39, is an OU alumnus. As vice president for the university community, he will oversee all diversity programs, including admissions. He will serve all three OU campuses — in Norman, Oklahoma City and Tulsa — and will report directly to Boren.