OSU graduate and experienced educational leader Dr. Caine will transition from her role on the OSUAA board to become the Alumni Association's 16th President
(STILLWATER, Oklahoma, July 26, 2022) — An inductee into the Oklahoma State University College of Education and Human Sciences Hall of Fame, Dr. Ann Caine will lead the Oklahoma State University Alumni Association (OSUAA), which represents more than 250,000 OSU alumni.
Tuesday's announcement followed a unanimous vote by the OSUAA Board of Directors to hire Dr. Caine.
The announcement marks the culmination of a search managed by an executive search firm and led by the executive committee of the Alumni Board, representatives from various offices at OSU, including the President's, Board of Regents, Athletics, The OSU Foundation, a representative from the OSUAA staff and several Alumni Association board members.
"We are delighted and excited to name Ann our next president. She will bring her exceptional administrative and creative talents and energy to lead our Alumni Association into a new era of opportunity," said current board chair Tina Parkhill. "Having served with Ann on the board, she is a faithful and loyal Cowboy who fully embraces and embodies our mission to support, advance and celebrate the successes of our university, alumni and students."
Past chair Tony LoPresto echoed Parkhill's enthusiasm.
"Our search produced an impressive pool of well-qualified individuals, several with great ties to OSU,” he said. “After much consideration, the committee focused on Ann, one of our board's most active and respected members. She has the managerial experience and talent to lead the organization and ensure we do not miss a beat. Her existing knowledge of the association made it a clear choice moving ahead."
Caine will begin her new role on Sept. 1. Caine graduated from OSU, earning her Doctorate in Education and Educational Administration in 1998.
"I am excited for the opportunity to serve our 250,000 alumni around the world, who, like me, love OSU," Caine said. "As a believer in the land-grant mission, I am humbled and honored to lead this wonderful association. I appreciate and thank the board members for their confidence and support. I am already enthusiastically looking forward to this year's Homecoming celebration and working with our university and Foundation presidents on our shared goal of advancing OSU."
Caine has spent her career in education, starting with teaching in elementary schools in Junction City, Kansas, in 1979 after receiving her elementary education degree from Kansas State University. She went on to earn a master's degree in special education. After earning her doctorate from OSU, she became an adjunct professor at the university and served as the Stillwater Public Schools superintendent for seven years. Upon retiring from Stillwater Public Schools, she became the director of education leadership position for the Oklahoma State School Board Association (OSSBA).
Caine, her husband Tracy, as well as both of her children and son-in-law are all OSU alumni and passionate fans of the Cowboys and Cowgirls.
Among her many achievements was receiving the Oklahoma Chairman's Award from the FFA and being named Oklahoma Superintendent of the Year. She is a member of Leadership Oklahoma Class XXIII and Leadership Stillwater Class XXI. Caine is a Life Member of the OSU Alumni Association, has been an active member of the Board and has led the Marketing Committee of OSUAA.
Her appointment comes almost a year after Dr. Kayse Shrum was appointed OSU's first female president and Blaire Atkinson, who led the OSUAA in 2018, was appointed to lead the OSU Foundation. This will be the first time female graduates lead the university, Alumni Association and Foundation in OSU’s history.
"The Alumni Association plays an important role not only with the university but more specifically in the lives of Cowboys and Cowgirls who live by the Cowboy Code and support our beloved alma mater,” Shrum said. “After getting to know Ann and talking with her about the new role recently, I was struck by how she, like Blaire and me, sees this opportunity not as another job but as a huge calling to support our university. I am looking forward with great anticipation to working together with Ann to serve our students and alumni. I wish Ann only the best as she takes the reins of this important and impactful organization."
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MEDIA CONTACT: Shannon Rigsby | Public Information Officer | 405-744-9081 | shannon.rigsby@okstate.edu
Oklahoma State University is a modern land-grant university that prepares students for success. OSU has more than 32,000 students across its five-campus system and more than 22,000 on its combined Stillwater and Tulsa campuses, with students from all 50 states and more than 100 nations. Established in 1890, OSU has graduated more than 275,000 students to serve the state of Oklahoma, the nation and the world.