DURANT, Okla. – Michele Campbell was the recipient of the Distinguished Leadership Award presented at Leadership Oklahoma’s 2017 All Class Reunion event, held earlier this week at Shangri-La Resort.

Campbell is assistant state director of communications, research and organizational development with the Oklahoma Small Business Development Center (OKSBDC) at Southeastern Oklahoma State University. In this role, she is responsible for strategic partnerships with various entities across the State, advisory board and legislative liaison activities, marketing, branding, and media programs, and the organizational development activities for OKSBDC.

Leadership Oklahoma (LOK) is a statewide organization encompassing citizens from every region of the state ensuring a diverse group of leaders.  It has a membership of approximately 1,480 adult leaders from 168 communities bringing expertise in business, education, health, government, non-profit, finance, law, and utility sectors from across the state.
Campbell is a Leadership Oklahoma graduate (Class XXIII) and Lifetime LOK member. Since graduation from the program, she has been very active with the LOK Board and various committee appointments, including the Executive Board, Board of Directors, Recruitment, Regional Ambassadors, Class Ambassador, Nominating, and Fall Forum. She has also chaired the Selection and the Program Committees.

A Southeastern Oklahoma State University graduate, Campbell has served in various education roles at her alma mater, including counselor and later as Director of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) TRIO programs for 17 years. Following her role with the TRIO programs, she was Continuing Education Director at Southeastern prior to moving to the Office of the President.

Campbell spent five years as Executive Assistant to the President, coordinating strategic partnerships and collaborative opportunities with internal and external constituencies for the University.

She has attended numerous programs and leadership academies, including four Harvard programs, crisis leadership training, the Balridge Examiner National Standards program, Edward Lowe Foundation Business Leaders’ Roundtable, economic development courses, and most recently, was selected for the Oklahoma Nature Conservancy’s Leadership Academy.

She has been nominated several times for the Journal Record’s Woman of the Year and has been recognized as one of 50 Oklahoma Women Making a Difference in 2013, 2016 and 2017. This year she will enter the Journal Record’s Circle of Excellence for Woman of the Year.

In June 2017, the Healdton High School graduate was selected by the Healdton Alumni Association for its Distinguished Alumnus Award.

Campbell has an Associate’s Degree from Murray State College and both her Bachelor of Arts and her Master of Behavioral Science degrees from Southeastern. She is completing a Ph.D in history from Swansea University in Wales on the topic of the Modern Business History of the Chickasaw Nation.

(cutline) Michele Campbell receives the 2017 Leadership Oklahoma Distinguished Leadership Award from LOK board chair Brent Kisling.