Dr. William W. Jernigan 1935 - 2022

It is with great sadness that we share with you the recent passing of our founding dean, Dr. William Jernigan. Dr. Jernigan served ORU from 1965 to 2017, providing outstanding leadership in the library and in many other points of service to the university.  

 His vision for a cutting-edge library at ORU was demonstrated when the Learning Resource Center opened in 1965 to wide acclaim as a state of the art learning facility. With Dr. Jernigan’s leadership, the ORU was one of the first libraries in Oklahoma to adopt automated cataloging and circulation. Through the years as the university grew and graduate programs were added, Dr. Jernigan made sure that the library grew and supported every academic program and that the library adopted new technologies as the digital age unfolded.  

ORU President Dr. William Wilson expressed his appreciation for Dr. Jernigan’s service, “Dr. Jernigan was a wonderful friend and servant at ORU. Year after year he assured our students were well served in the library and that our graduates left the university with appropriate protocol and joy. Dr. Jernigan exemplified the quality of people God has used throughout our history to build such a great institution. He will be missed at ORU.”

Dr. Jernigan's obituary and service information are available here.