NSU professor to receive Oklahoma Medal for Excellence in Teaching Award
TAHLEQUAH, Okla. — Northeastern State University optometry professor Dr. Alissa Proctor was named the 2023 recipient of the Oklahoma Medal for Excellence in Teaching at a Regional University/Community College Award.
The Oklahoma Foundation for Excellence honors outstanding educators in Oklahoma’s public schools. Proctor was among five recipients announced to receive a 2023 Oklahoma Medal for Excellence Award. The nonprofit recognizes and encourages academic excellence in Oklahoma’s public schools.
“I am truly honored and humbled to be selected for this award as undoubtedly there are so many hard-working, dedicated individuals who also applied,” Proctor said.
She added her husband and NSU Assistant Professor in Teacher Education Dr. Jason Proctor was a previous medal recipient in secondary teaching and encouraged her to apply. She is grateful for his support and that of others who wrote letters of recommendation for the award.
Proctor completed a Family Practice Optometry Residency at the Northeastern State University Oklahoma College of Optometry (NSUOCO) in 2006 after graduating from the Michigan College of Optometry at Ferris State University. She then joined NSUOCO where she currently serves as a professor.
During her time at NSU, she has facilitated vision screenings with first- and second-year optometry students and has cared for more than 21,000 children. Proctor is also the founding faculty member of Students Volunteering Optometric Services to Humanity at NSUOCO. She has helped students plan 11 international optometric mission trips and has personally volunteered on three trips to Honduras.
Proctor’s teaching philosophy has evolved from a lecture-style presentation to creating a learner-centered environment. She connects content to real-world applications through case studies and hands-on learning opportunities to apply knowledge to patient care. In her pediatrics course, for example, Proctor invites alumni to bring their children in for students to conduct exams. She also recruits faculty and staff to volunteer as patients, while her students work in small groups to examine them and prescribe lenses.
“Dr. Proctor's innovative and energetic teaching style is admired by students and facilitates effective learning,” said NSUOCO Dean Doug Penisten. “She is a beloved member of the college and is well deserving of such a prestigious recognition. We are very proud of her.”
Proctor has been honored by the students as the College of Optometry’s Outstanding Teacher of the Year six times. In 2014, she was awarded Patron of the Year by Tahlequah Public Schools Board of Education for her continued support of students through the school vision screening program.
She has also been named a 2023 Centurion, an honor at NSU given to NSU alumni, faculty, staff, students or any member of the NSU community—whether past or present—who impacted the life of the nominator, the Northeastern community or the public at large.
“This is an outstanding award for a very worthy recipient,” NSU President Steve Turner said. “Dr. Proctor is an outstanding educator. We are so proud that others recognize what an amazing individual she is and are grateful to have someone of her caliber as a member of our NSU community.”
Other Oklahoma Medal for Excellence Award recipients include: Barbie Jackson, STEM teacher, Limestone Technology Academy, Sand Springs, elementary teaching; Jason Paris, fine arts teacher, Cherokee Junior High and High School, secondary teaching; Kyle Reynolds, superintendent, Woodward Public Schools, Elementary/Secondary Administration; and Dr. F. Bailey Norwood, professor of agribusiness, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, Research University Teaching.
The awards will be presented at the foundation’s 37th Academic Awards Celebration on May 20 at the Cox Business Convention Center in Tulsa. Each of the five honorees will receive a $5,000 cash prize and a glass “Roots and Wings” sculpture, designed by the late Oklahoma artist Ron Roberts and produced by Artistic Glass Studio of Edmond.
“The Oklahoma Medal for Excellence is one of our state’s most prestigious educator awards and recognizes public school educators for their passion and innovation, their commitment to professional development, and their extraordinary impact on student learning,” Elizabeth Inbody, executive director of the Oklahoma Foundation for Excellence, said. “By honoring these exceptional educators, we are sending a message that we value excellence in public schools and the professionals who have given so much of themselves to enrich the lives of our children.”
