Lee Bird 06/18/2019 and 08/06/2019

This is a two-part interview. In the first interview on 6/18/2019, Dr. Lee Bird, former vice president of student affairs at Oklahoma State University (OSU), discusses her college experience starting as a first generation college student and eventually graduating with her PhD from the University of Arizona in 1991. She talks about the mentorship she received in college and shares some of her administrative positions in Pennsylvania and Minnesota before coming to OSU in 2000. Dr. Bird describes settling into her new role at OSU during the wake of a plane crash that killed many Oklahoma State basketball players and staff, and how this tragedy showed the strength of the campus community. She shares some of her philosophies and approaches to her role supervising several campus divisions and stresses the importance of an open door policy and student diversity. Dr. Bird also touches on her involvement with the International Symposium on Student Affairs and shares her opinions on the benefits of student housing. In the second interview on 8/6/2019,  Dr. Bird discusses her experience at OSU and the traditions and culture that set OSU apart from other universities. She describes some of the organizations she has been a part of as well as the changes she helped implement on campus. Dr. Bird also highlights the wonderful staff and student leaders she has worked with over her career. Dr. Bird shares some of the surprises she experienced from her time at OSU as well as the most enjoyable aspects of her work.