Clements to be inducted into Oklahoma Music Educators Association Hall of Fame

December 2, 2025

TULSA, Okla. – Deborah Clements, adjunct instructor in the Department of Performing Arts at Southeastern Oklahoma State University, will be inducted into the Oklahoma Music Educators Association (OkMEA) Hall of Fame at the OkMEA Honor Awards Reception on January 22, 2026.

Clements teaches Voice I and II and Choral Methods at Southeastern as director of the Chorvettes. She earned both her Bachelors in Music Education and Masters in Education from Southeastern.

In addition to 13 years as an adjunct instructor at Southeastern, Clements taught for 32 years in Durant ISD and five years in Texas City ISD. She was a finalist for Oklahoma Teacher of the Year in 1995, the 1994 Durant ISD Teacher of the Year and a three-time Durant Middle School Teacher of the Year. She was also named the Levi Fry Teacher of the Year in Texas City ISD in 2003.

In 2007, Deborah began teaching at Durant High School, where the Durant Choirs consistently received superior ratings at OSSAA state contests. In 2015, the Varsity Mixed Choir was chosen as an honor group to perform at the OkMEA state convention and Clements received the OkMEA Exemplary Choral Teacher Award.

Clements served as the SEOkCDA Honor Choir All-District Coordinator for eight years and was the OkMEA Children’s All-State Chair in 2001-02. She was the OkMEA All State Women’s Choir Chairperson in 2013 and was the OkCDA Southeast Representative in 2001-02 and 2016-18.

Currently she works with the Oklahoma Shakespearean Festival teaching voice lessons, serving as musical director for several productions, and serving on the OSF board. Her professional affiliations include National Association for Music Education (NAFME), OkMEA, American Choral Directors Association (ACDA), Oklahoma Choral Directors Association (OkCDA), Oklahoma Music Adjuticators Association (OMAA), and National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS). She is a proud member of the Choctaw Nation.