Stinson named vice president for academic affairs at NOC

Dr. Pam Stinson, currently serving as Northern Oklahoma College associate vice president for academic affairs, has been named vice president for academic affairs, succeeding Dr. Judy Colwell, who will retire after 25 years of service at NOC.

Stinson will assume her new duties beginning July 1. She will remain on the Tonkawa campus and will serve as a member of the NOC Executive Council.

Reporting directly to the president, she will be responsible for providing an institution-wide vision, leadership and strategic direction for academic programs. In her new position she will provide oversight and leadership for all functions of academic affairs for the college, a multi-campus institution. Stinson will work closely with other vice presidents, academic division chairs and program directors to facilitate the overall mission of the college and provide the vision and leadership that promote and support a commitment to academic achievement, excellence in instructional methodology, assessment of teaching and learning, and student success.

NOC President Dr. Cheryl Evans said, “Dr. Stinson is an exceptional leader. She has a wealth of experience that will ensure the continued strength of Northern’s academic programs. The committee was impressed with her dedication to NOC students. She is known for her integrity, intellect, and work ethic, all of which will serve her and the institution well in the coming years. I look forward to working with Dr. Stinson as she takes on her new role and responsibilities.”

Stinson earned a Bachelor of Arts in English Education degree from Northeastern State University (NSU) in 1987 and then taught at Braggs High School before returning to Northeastern State to complete a Master of Arts in Communications degree in 1989.

While at NSU, she taught English as a graduate assistant and worked part time in NSU’s Living Literature Center, a center founded by Dr. Phyllis Willis to promote literary conferences and travel to literary and historical sites, a model that would lead to Stinson’s lifelong love of global education and to eight international trips to date she has co-sponsored for NOC students.

Stinson continued to teach part time for NSU while beginning a doctoral program at Oklahoma State University, as well as serving as a graduate teaching assistant at OSU. In 1996, she took a full-time position at NOC as an English instructor while finishing her doctoral program, and in 1997, she graduated with a Doctor of Philosophy in Composition/Rhetoric and Renaissance Literature from OSU, where she earned one of five annual recognitions for graduate research awards. She continued to teach at NOC until 1999 when she and her husband and family moved to Minnesota for a two-year stay and for teaching jobs. In 2001, they returned to Oklahoma and NOC, and Stinson taught from 2001 to 2008, also serving as chair of the Language Arts Division from 2006 through 2008. In 2008, she was selected as NOC’s dean of instruction (later titled associate vice president for academic affairs), a position she has held since.

During her years at NOC, Stinson has served as a peer reviewer and institutional liaison for the Higher Learning Commission, NOC’s accrediting body, as well as coordinator of the institutional strategic plan.

“I am extremely honored to be given an opportunity to serve Northern Oklahoma College in this new role. Our students make an investment every day in their futures, and I feel truly blessed to be surrounded by so many Northern employees who work tirelessly to help students achieve those goals. I am excited about the possibilities for opening even more opportunities to students and supporting them in their journeys,” Stinson said.

Stinson and her husband Don reside in Tonkawa and have three children, Caleb, Ethan and Emily, all NOC graduates.