The Strategic Ohio Council for Higher Education (SOCHE) has recognized three Southern State Community College individuals who have demonstrated excellence in teaching, service and scholarship. Those honored with the 2022-23 SOCHE Excellence Awards include Dr. Joshua Montgomery, Dr. Julianne Krebs and Susan Morris.

The Faculty Excellence Award presented to Montgomery recognizes full-time and adjunct faculty who have made significant contributions to their institution’s mission. Montgomery is the associate professor of computer science, a division coordinator for applied sciences, and the esports coordinator at Southern State. He serves as the custom curriculum coordinator for the Ohio Coders Project, an initiative that was developed to help K-12 schools in Southern Ohio develop coding skills. Montgomery also volunteers for multiple STEAM droid/robot builder organizations.

The Staff Excellence Award presented to Krebs recognizes those who go above and beyond the call for service. Krebs is the director of nursing and dean of health sciences at Southern State and demonstrates a passion for nursing practice and a drive to improve the health of the communities served. She utilizes a team approach and values the knowledge and skill of the members. She views community and educational partners as key components of success. She sees opportunity in the ever changing environments of health care and education is viewed as an exciting and ongoing learning experience.

The Campus Impact Award presented to Morris is given to employees who have made exemplary impacts at their institution. Through her leadership as the COVID-19 coordinator, Southern State developed the resilience to overcome the COVID-19 pandemic. During the 2022 pandemic recovery phase, Morris was a student success champion and coach, assisting at-risk students to become academically successful. Her work was highlighted at the Emerging Stronger adjunct faculty conference in March 2023. Her passion to build scholars and leaders has elevated Southern State’s Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society Chapter to a five-star level with many regional and international awards. Receiving a 2022 milestone award, she was also recognized as a most distinguished PTK advisor for the Ohio Region.

“Southern State is fortunate to have many wonderful faculty and staff,” said SSCC Vice President of Academic Affairs Dr. Erika Goodwin. “The three award winners this year exemplify Southern State’s core values and have made a significant impact on our students and their colleagues. We are honored to recognize three truly outstanding members of our team,” Goodwin adds.

SOCHE is the regional leader for higher collaboration, engaging with colleges, universities and industry to transform the economy through the education and employment of nearly 200,000 students in Southwest Ohio. See more at http://www.soche.org.

Submitted by Elizabeth Burkard, director of marketing, SSCC.