Operation Secret Santa

“During this holiday season and challenging semester, Gaylord College's Secret Santa has a surprise for you. We would like to award you a scholarship to help pay your bursar bill!” 

Twenty-five Gaylord students received the most unexpected holiday gift last December, delivered directly to their OU inbox: a portion or all of their remaining bursar balance paid off, allowing them to enroll for their next semester at Gaylord College. Operation Secret Santa was officially live. 

Operation Secret Santa came to be during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The effect of the coronavirus on individuals attending university was undeniable: leaving decisions related to traveling home, work and internship opportunities and upcoming enrollment uncertain and unpredictable. Gaylord’s Dean Ed Kelley, Director of Development Lee Reynolds and Director of Student Services Kathy Sawyer could see the direct effects of this uncertainty on Gaylord students. Putting their heads together, they decided that by allocating funds from the Student Experience Fund, they could alleviate a small portion of stress from some deserving Gaylord students.

2020 was a difficult year for a variety of reasons. For Gaylord student Anthony, Project Secret Santa came at the perfect time. “The pandemic was another obstacle in what turned out to be a very trying year for me on many fronts,” he wrote in a response email. “This means so much to me. I often tell my family that help from Gaylord is another motivating factor to be as successful as possible so that I may be able to give back to this university financially down the road.” 

Responses like Anthony’s were not infrequent. Project Secret Santa’s inaugural year was well-received across the board by surprised and grateful Gaylord students, now able to return to complete their college careers at Gaylord College. 

Dean Kelley and his team have plans to continue this initiative for years to come, continuing to support the students that make Gaylord so special, and inspiring future Gaylord alumni to pay it forward to the next generation of students dreaming of sitting in the infamous Gaylord auditorium seats.

“The pandemic was another obstacle in what turned out to be a very trying year for me on many fronts. This means so much to me. I often tell my family that help from Gaylord is another motivating factor to be as successful as possible so that I may be able to give back to this university financially down the road.” - Anthony, Operation Secret Santa Recipient