Tulsa resident P. Mitchell Adwon was sworn in as a member of the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education during today’s meeting by Oklahoma Supreme Court Justice Yvonne Kauger. His appointment by Gov. Kevin Stitt was recently confirmed by both the Senate Education Committee and the full Senate.
“We welcome Mitch Adwon to the State Regents,” said chair Michael C. Turpen. “Regent Adwon’s experiences and expertise will greatly benefit the state system of higher education and the students we serve. He recognizes the invaluable role our public colleges and universities play in moving Oklahoma forward.”
Adwon will serve a nine-year term that expires in May 2032. He replaces State Regent Emeritus Joseph L. Parker Jr.
“I am excited to begin working with Regent Adwon,” said Chancellor Allison D. Garrett. “His prior service as a Tulsa Community College regent and his passion for helping students earn their degrees will advance our efforts as a system to meet Oklahoma’s current and projected employment needs.”
Adwon is president of Adwon Properties Inc., which specializes in providing brokerage and management services for commercial investment properties. He is a managing member of Polly Properties LLC, a commercial real estate investment holding company, and other related real estate investment entities with a multi-state focus. He served on the TCC Board of Regents for two years and is a board member and past president of the Salvation Army Advisory Board of Directors. Other current memberships include the Philbrook Museum Board of Trustees, Rogers State University Constitution Award Board of Governors, and The University of Tulsa’s Henry Kendall College of Arts and Sciences Visiting Committee.
“Oklahoma’s public colleges and universities fulfill an important role in serving individual Oklahomans and strengthening communities,” said Adwon. “I am thankful to Governor Stitt for the opportunity to join the State Regents and contribute to the important work of this board across our state.”
A member of the Cherokee Nation, Adwon has served on the Cherokee Nation Businesses Board of Directors. Other past service includes Leadership Oklahoma, Leadership Tulsa, the Oklahoma Film Commission, Oklahoma State University Foundation, Tulsa Authority for the Recovery of Energy, Tulsa Metropolitan Utility Authority, University Center of Tulsa Foundation/Rogers University Chair, Tulsa Historical Society, Holland Hall School and Tulsa City-County Library Commission. In addition, Adwon and his wife, Melinda, previously co-chaired the Domestic Violence Intervention Services Monarch Ball and the Salvation Army William Booth Society. He is a graduate of Holland Hall School and The University of Tulsa.
The Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education is a nine-member constitutional board that coordinates all 25 public higher education institutions in Oklahoma. The board prescribes academic standards of higher education, determines functions and courses of study at state colleges and universities, grants degrees, makes budget requests to the Legislature, allocates funding for each college and university, recommends proposed tuition and fees within limits set by the Legislature, and manages numerous scholarships and special programs. State regents are appointed by the governor for nine-year terms.Oklahoma’s public universities have the eighth-lowest cost of attendance in the country. STEM bachelor’s degree production increased 42.4% over the last 10 years, and increased 24% at all degree levels. Nearly 90% of Oklahomans – and almost two-thirds of non-resident students – who graduate from a state system college or university remain and work in the state.