Three Seminole State College employees were honored at the 56th annual Oklahoma Association of Community Colleges Conference held on Oct. 6 at Tulsa Community College. During the event, Nursing Program Director Crystal Bray was named SSC Faculty Member of the Year, NASNTI Director Kay Wallace was named Professional Staff Member of the Year and Lead Custodian Christie McKee was named Classified Staff Member of the Year.

Bray received her associate degree in Nursing from SSC, her bachelor’s degree in Nursing from Wesleyan University and her master’s degree in Nursing Education from Southern Nazarene University. She has worked at SSC for 11 years. In addition to serving as the Director of the Nursing Program, Bray also serves as the Chair of the Health Sciences Division.

Outside of SSC, Bray serves as the President of the Wetumka Fire Department Women’s Auxiliary and Secretary of the Wetumka First Assembly of God. She and her husband, Roll, make their home in Wetumka. They have two daughters, Randi and Allison.

Wallace received her bachelor’s degree in Home Economics from East Central University, her master’s degree in Organizational Management from the University of Phoenix and her master’s degree in Grant Writing Management and Evaluation from Concordia

University. As the Director of the NASNTI program at SSC, Wallace has spearheaded a number of projects to improve accessibility for students and organized a number of cultural events highlighting Native American culture. A grant proposal written by Wallace recently led to an award of more than $150,000 to fund a number of additional future events on SSC’s campus focusing on Native languages.

Wallace is involved in several community organizations. She is a member of the Cornerstone Missionary Baptist Church, a Seminole Nation Museum Board Member, an SSC Professional Staff Council member and serves on the College’s Student Success Committee. She resides in Wewoka.

McKee graduated from Seminole High School and attended the Tulsa Welding School. She has worked at SSC for four years. In her role, she supervises the custodial team, manages supply inventories, sets up events hosted at the College and cleans buildings across campus.

She is a member of SSC’s Classified Staff Association. She has two daughters, Kim and Jessie. She resides in Seminole.