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- Former SE President Sean Burrage to be inducted into Oklahoma Higher Education Hall of Fame
OKLAHOMA CITY – Former Southeastern Oklahoma State University president and current Chancellor of the Oklahoma State System of Higher Education Sean Burrage is one of 10 inductees into the 2025 class of the Oklahoma Higher Education Hall of Fame, as announced by the Oklahoma Higher Education Heritage Society.
The 31st annual induction ceremony and banquet will be held on Monday, November 3, 2025, at the University of Central Oklahoma’s Nigh University Center Grand Ballroom.
Burrage served as Southeastern’s 20th President from 2014-19 and has been the Chancellor of the Oklahoma State System of Higher Education since December 2024. Under Burrage’s leadership at Southeastern, the university streamlined operations, including establishing a shared vice president position with Murray State College, and significantly increased both undergraduate and graduate enrollment.
Burrage is the fourth Oklahoma Chancellor with ties to Southeastern. The first Chancellor – M.A. Nash – taught at Southeastern, the second Chancellor – E.T. Dunlap – graduated from Southeastern, and the eighth Chancellor – Glen D. Johnson – served as president at Southeastern from 1997-2006.
“On behalf of the Southeastern community, I extend heartfelt congratulations to Chancellor Sean Burrage on his upcoming induction into the Oklahoma Higher Education Hall of Fame,” said Southeastern Interim President Dr. David Whitlock. “During his tenure as President of Southeastern Oklahoma State University, Chancellor Burrage provided visionary leadership and laid the groundwork for many of the successes we enjoy today. We remain beneficiaries of his foresight and dedication to advancing higher education. On a personal note, I am grateful for his longtime friendship and the support he has consistently shown throughout the years.”
Burrage becomes the 17th person associated with Southeastern and fifth former Southeastern President to be inducted into the Oklahoma Higher Education Hall of Fame including those who were students, instructors or administrators at SE:
This is the fourth consecutive year Southeastern has been represented in the Oklahoma Higher Education Hall of Fame’s induction class. Burrage and 2016 Hall of Fame inductee Glen D. Johnson notably served as both Southeastern President and state higher education Chancellor.
Born in Durant and raised in Antlers, Burrage is a member of the Choctaw Nation and holds a bachelor’s degree in accounting and a juris doctorate from OU. He and his wife, Julie, a Tulsa native and nonprofit consultant, have four sons.
In addition to his past presidency of Southeastern, Burrage was managing partner with the Taylor Burrage Law Firm in Claremore. He served two terms in the Oklahoma State Senate, representing Rogers and Mayes counties, during which he served as minority floor leader from 2011-14. He was vice president for executive affairs and chief of Staff at the University of Oklahoma after he departed from SE in 2019 until his appointment as Chancellor in 2024.
During his tenure as a state senator, Burrage represented approximately 80,000 constituents, authored or co-authored over 50 bills that were enacted into law, and served on several legislative committees and task forces, including the 2008 legislative task force on Oklahoma’s Promise.
Burrage has been a member of numerous boards and committees, including the State Regents’ Blueprint 2030 Strategic Planning Committee and the 2017 Task Force on the Future of Higher Education; Gov. Mary Fallin’s Education Advisory Committee; the Rogers State University Foundation; the University Hospitals Authority and Trust; and the Oklahoma Foundation for Excellence. He served as associate bar examiner for the Oklahoma Bar Association and was named among the Best Lawyers in America and as a Super Lawyer, both designations conferred by his peers. He was a Litigation Counsel of America Fellow and an Aspen-Rodel Fellow in Public Leadership. In 2007, he was voted the Higher Education Alumni Council’s “Best Newcomer Legislator of the Year.”