OCCC’s Dr. Kristina Holton Receives 2026 Cam Preus Award
Oregon Coast Community College is celebrating another statewide honor for one of its leaders. On Thursday, Nov. 5, Dr. Kristina Holton, Vice President of Academic and Student Affairs, received the 2026 Cam Preus Award at the Oregon Community College Association’s annual Howard Cherry Awards Banquet in Sunriver.
Holton shared the award with Amy Burbee of Linn-Benton Community College. The two were recognized by the Oregon Presidents’ Council for their work sustaining the Oregon Institute for Leadership Development (OILD), a statewide program that has helped women working in Oregon’s community colleges develop their leadership potential for 35 years.
The Cam Preus Award honors retired OCCA Executive Director Dr. Cam Preus and recognizes individuals with at least 15 years of community college service who have demonstrated extraordinary commitment to student access, success and statewide impact.
“We could not be more proud of Dr. Holton,” said OCCC President Dr. Marshall Mease Roache. “Her impact on Oregon’s community college system has been felt for years. When the future of OILD was uncertain following the pandemic, Dr. Holton and her colleagues stepped forward to ensure this important leadership program would continue. Today, as OILD celebrates its 35th year, countless women across our community colleges have benefited from the opportunities it provides. We’re fortunate to have her here at OCCC.”
Sustaining a Legacy of Women’s Leadership
The four-day OILD program brings women from community colleges throughout Oregon together to develop leadership skills, build confidence and establish professional relationships. Sessions address leadership, team building, communication, institutional politics and organizational change.
“This recognition is especially meaningful because it reflects the power of investing in people,” said Dr. Holton. “OILD has always been about creating opportunities for women to grow in their leadership potential, support one another and have meaningful impact across Oregon’s community colleges. Cam invested in both Amy and me when we each attended OILD, and we are honored that we get to carry that work forward into the future.”
Holton joined OCCC in July 2026 after serving as Dean of Science, Engineering and Mathematics at Linn-Benton Community College. Her community college career began at Lane Community College in 2010.
An OILD co-facilitator since March 2023, Holton has helped coordinate the program’s outreach, logistics, programming and finances, while also presenting sessions on leadership theory and practice. She serves as vice president for OILD in the Oregon chapter of the American Association for Women in Community Colleges.
For OCCC, the recognition marks the second consecutive year that one of its vice presidents has received the Cam Preus Award. In November 2025, Dr. Bruce Clemetsen, then also serving as the College’s Vice President of Academic and Student Affairs, received the same statewide honor for his decades of service to Oregon’s community college students.